Taxes are widely viewed as unfair and no more so than donations tax. Most people are horrified to hear they must pay donations tax on any amount above R100 000 they give-away per year. I often hear “its my money I
Tax free Bank deposit advice
I was in two minds whether to write this article criticising the banks for promoting their tax-free savings products for fear of discouraging the act of saving in a country where the savings rate is negative, which means “we don’t
The estate planning benefit of retirement funds
Retirement Funds are well understood for the income tax benefit in that contributions to retirement funds are tax deductible based on 27.5% of a person’s taxable income, capped on R 350 000 per annum. Often overlooked is the estate planning benefit
Volatility provides opportunities
You had to feel a little sorry for our newest finance minister when he presented the recent mini-budget. Stuck between “a rock and a hard place” with no room to manoeuvre. SA has literally hit its fiscal cliff with the
2017 Budget – Striking a very delicate balance
Several years back I wrote an article titled “Lekker by die See, maar duur by die See”, which translated means “Nice by the Sea, but expensive by the Sea”. The gist of the article was the prospect of future higher
Interest-free loans to trusts can have positive spin-offs
The recent Tax Law Amendment Bill included amongst others, changes to the taxation of zero interest and / or low interest loans to trusts, which will come into effect on 1 March 2017. Zero interest loans and / or loans
Davis Tax Committee’s second Report on Estate Duty a major improvement
After scoring a consensus 3 out of 10 for the 1st report, the Davis Tax Committee has delivered what I consider to be a vastly improved 2nd report, which I will touch on very briefly in this article. The key
Tax the Rich
Reading the 1st interim report on estate duty by The Davis Tax Committee (DTC) reminds me of the joke re: a new simplified tax form with only two lines: How much money did you make? Send it to us! Judge
Tax Free Savings Accounts (TFSA)
Now that the hype and fanfare has died down a bit, I would like to discuss tax free fee savings accounts (TFSA), which were introduced 1 March of this year. TFSA allow taxpayers the opportunity to save R 30 000
Avoid Tax Legally
The current rules governing the taxation of retirement funds provides for a legal tax avoidance scheme for the very wealthy to consider. This is why: Retirement funds pay no tax; that is no income, capital gain or dividend tax Non-tax