HILARY JOFFE: Grim auguries in a lopsided tax base and crippled Sars
When companies publish announcements just before Christmas, it's often because they've something to hide. Not so the South African Revenue Service (Sars), which belatedly published its annual Tax Statistics book on December 20 - all 316 pages of it. With Sars, the likely reason for the delay is a lack of capacity. And the picture the book paints is not pretty, reflecting both the ailing state of the economy and the erosion of the tax agency's enforcement capacity during the state-capture years.
The book has been published since 2008, becoming an essential resource for analysts of everything from income inequality to investment spending. The numbers are historical, and not always easy to interpret. But as next month's tough budget looms, the tax trends they detail are a telling pointer to SA's economic and fiscal metrics...
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.