“The hardest thing in the world to understand is the income tax.” (Albert Einstein)  Tax rebates, deductions and incentives provide relief to taxpayers by reducing the amount of tax payable to SARS, resulting in welcome tax savings. But how do you figure out which rebates, deductions or incentives apply to you – and what’s the procedure for claiming them? This is where we come in. Chances are we’ve already applied a number of these rebates, deductions or incentives to your tax returns. But here’s a list of some of the tax rebates, deductions and incentives that could make a substantial difference to your SARS bill for the 2024 Tax Season. Some of them are fairly wellknown, but others are pretty obscure. If you think you qualify for additional rebates, deductions or incentives, please do get in touch. We are committed to ensuring that you don’t pay more tax than you should. For individuals Tax threshold: You only start paying tax when you earn more than R95,750 (under 65 years); or R148,217 (65 - 75 years); or R165,689 (75 and older). Tax rebates: Taxpayers also qualify for a R17,235 primary rebate; an additional secondary rebate of R9,444 if over 65, and a further tertiary rebate of R3,145 if over 75.   Medical tax credits for medical scheme contributions can be deducted from your tax payable at R364 each per month for you and your first dependent, and R246 for each subsequent dependant. The additional medical expenses tax credit allows qualifying out-of-pocket medical expenses to be deducted from the normal tax payable. This applies to medical expenses that were not recovered from your medical aid.  Retirement fund contributions to a locally-registered pension, provident, or retirement annuity fund are deductible subject to certain maximum limits. Amounts received/accrued from tax-free investments are exempt from tax, subject to limitations. Donations to certain approved public benefit organisations are allowed as deductions, up to a maximum of 10% of taxable income. A solar energy tax credit of 25% of the cost of the solar PV panels (maximum R15,000) is available for new and unused solar PV panels acquired and used for the first time between 1 March 2023 to 29 February 2024. Home office expenditure: Employees who have a dedicated area used regularly and exclusively for “trade” in their home may be allowed to deduct, pro-rata, certain expenses like rent, repairs, utilities, phones and internet.  The foreign tax credit is a rebate against income tax for foreign taxes paid on foreign-sourced income.  Taxpayers carrying on a business in their individual capacity or in partnership may deduct business expenditure or losses on the same basis as companies. For businesses Tax relief measures for small business corporations (SBCs) allows for a progressive tax rate, immediate write-off of new plant or machinery, and a wear-and-tear or accelerated allowance on depreciable assets. Tax relief for qualifying micro businesses involves a simplified turnover tax, instead of the usual taxes (income tax, provisional tax and Capital Gains Tax) payable by companies. Energy efficiency savings incentive provides a deduction for savings from implementing energy-efficient methods in the production…

“We urge taxpayers to be transparent and accurate when filing their tax returns to enable a constructive relationship with SARS.” (Edward Kieswetter, SARS Commissioner) July 15 marked the start of the 2024 Filing Season for provisional and non-provisional taxpayers who were not subjected to auto-assessments, covering the tax period 1 March 2023 to 29 February 2024. As part of our quest to simplify your life, we’ve compiled a list of the timelines and the changes since last year. But first, here are five ways we can help you this tax season. 5 ways we’ve got your back We can help you avoid non-compliance. SARS has warned that the use of technology and data has enhanced its ability to detect non-compliance such as, for example, not including rental income in a return, which could potentially make you guilty of fraud. Our team is up to date with the many changes in tax legislation introduced each year and our understanding of the complexities and intricacies will streamline your filing season. We ensure all the boxes are ticked on every tax return you need to submit. This will help you to avoid a SARS audit where possible, and to ensure any verification or audit can be concluded quickly and cost-effectively. We make sure that you claim every tax rebate, deduction or incentive available to you, so you don’t under-claim and pay more tax than required. We protect you from scams. Sadly, filing season is also scamming season. We are alerted about all the latest scams and keep your information with SARS updated to prevent fraud and identity theft. Dates to diarise Changes to take note of Various changes have been made since last year – the quickest way to find out if any of these apply to you or your business is simply to contact us. The pool of auto-assessed taxpayers increased to about 4.8 million this year, compared to around 3.8 million taxpayers last year. A solar energy tax credit of 25% of the cost of the solar PV panels (maximum R15,000) is available for new and unused solar PV panels acquired and brought into use for the first time by individuals between 1 March 2023 and 29 February 2024. Pro rata retirement fund contribution deductions are now allowed if an individual taxpayer’s year of assessment is less than 12 months. Exemption of tax-free investment amounts received or accrued: if your year of assessment is less than 12 months, the applicable contribution limit (currently R36,000) will be applied pro rata. Deductions in respect of buildings in Urban Development Zones – the allowable deduction has been extended until 31 March 2025. There’s a redesigned renewable energy tax deduction for certain machinery, plant, implements, utensils and articles used in production of renewable energy. ITR12 Form changes affecting the foreign employment income exemption and Beneficial Owner (BO). The bottom line If this is all a tad confusing, fret not! Our team of seasoned tax professionals will make all the difference this filing season. We are…

07 August – Monthly Pay-As-You-Earn (PAYE) submissions and payments 23 August – Value Added Tax (VAT) manual submissions and payments 29 August – Excise duty payments 30 August – VAT electronic submissions and payments, Corporate Income Tax Provisional payments where applicable, and Personal Income Tax Provisional payments. Disclaimer: The information provided herein should not be used or relied on as professional advice. No liability can be accepted for any errors or omissions nor for any loss or damage arising from reliance upon any information herein. Always contact your professional adviser for specific and detailed advice. © CA(SA)DotNews