Administrative non-compliance penalties, which can range from R250 to R16 000 per month, depending on the taxable income of the taxpayer and will be imposed if taxpayers fail to submit their tax returns timeously as required under the Tax Administration Act.
Not only will you be accumulating large amounts of administrative penalties or will you be unable to obtain a refund from SARS due to your non-compliance, but you can possibly even be faced with criminal charges. Continuous non-compliance can lead to criminal prosecution and offenders can be imprisoned for up to a period of up to two years.
| ASSESSED LOSS OR TAXABLE INCOME FOR THE PRECEDING YEAR | MONTHLY PENALTY |
| Assessed loss | R250 |
| R0 – R250 000 | R250 |
| R250 001 – R500 000 | R500 |
| R500 001 – R1 000 000 | R1 000 |
| R1 000 001 – R5 000 000 | R2 000 |
| R5 000 001 – R10 000 000 | R4 000 |
| R10 000 001 – R50 000 000 | R8 000 |
| Above R50 000 000 | R16 000 |
To avoid unnecessary penalties and interest, it is prudent that taxpayers file their tax returns timeously. However, taxpayers should also bear in mind that administrative penalties that have accumulated over a period of time, can always be waived by SARS if the taxpayer submits a carefully drafted request for remission of penalties.
Jashwin Baijoo
Head of Strategic Engagement & Compliance
Admitted Attorney, LLB, LLM (Tax)
Professional Tax Specialist (SA)
SAIPA Tax Committee Member
Our multidisciplinary team of highly qualified tax attorneys and chartered accountants will be able to assist you to submit any outstanding returns and to assist you in successfully remitting administrative penalties that were imposed in previous years due to outstanding returns. Any information shared with our tax attorneys will be protected by legal privilege.
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