NEWS ANALYSIS: Taxpayers pay the price for poor communication from SARS
‘If SARS can simply escape this obligation to give taxpayers an opportunity to be heard before having to pay, it makes a mockery of the supposed protections in the law’
Poor communication from the South African Revenue Service (SARS) when issuing assessments following an audit, or a review or verification, is causing confusion and frustration among taxpayers. The Tax Administration Act requires SARS to provide taxpayers with a letter of audit findings after an audit to allow them time to respond before an assessment is issued. However, the letters are not co-ordinated or timed properly, leaving taxpayers uncertain as to how to respond once the assessment has been raised. In practice, taxpayers also receive assessments without proper explanations for why deductions are denied or additional information rejected. Patricia Williams, chairperson of the tax administration committee of the South African Institute of Tax Professionals (Sait), says it should be compulsory for SARS to issue a letter of findings where any of its processes — whether an audit, verification or investigation — results in the potential raising of an assessment. In a submission to ...
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