Archive for month: July, 2016

Members of the public are randomly emailed with false emails made to look as if these emails were sent from SARS, but are in fact fraudulent emails aimed at enticing unsuspecting taxpayers to part with personal information such as bank account details. Examples include emails that appear to be from returns@sars.co.za or refunds@sars.co.za indicating that tax payers are eligible to receive TAX refunds.

These emails contain links to false forms and false websites made to look like the “real thing”, but with the aim of fooling people into entering personal information such as bank account details which the criminals then extract and use fraudulently.

Please note these are scams and SARS taxpayers should take note of the following:

• Do not open or respond to emails from unknown sources.
• Beware of emails that ask for personal, tax, banking and eFiling details (login credentials, passwords, pins, credit / debit card information, etc.) as SARS will never ask taxpayers for such information in an email.
• SARS will not request your banking details through the phone, email or websites.
• Beware of false sms’s.

More samples:

Institution Specific Scams: Absa | Capitec | FNB | Nedbank | Standard Bank

Topic Specific Scams: Audit | Personal and Banking Details | Refunds | Payments

Source Specific Scams: Email | Letter/Fax | Phone Call | SMS | Website

 Example of Latest Scams:

• SARS SCAM – eFiling refund due – 14 July 2016
• SARS SCAM – SARS eFiling refund – 12 July 2016
• SARS SCAM – Returns Confirmed – 23 June 2016
• SARS SCAM – Confirm Returns – 23 June 2016
• SARS SCAM – Urgent notice from the office of the Minister of Finance – 23 June 2016

• This ruling determines –
  • Whether or not the investee is a “controlled group company” and that the shares purchased by the Applicant and Co-Investor is “equity shares”; and
  • The meaning of “hotel keeper” and the allowances that a hotel keeper may claim.
• The Applicant and Co-Investor intends to invest in qualifying companies that will carry on the business of hotel keepers. They will each appoint a company (manager) to operate and manage their respective hotels. The manager will guarantee certain profit targets per annum.
• The Applicant intends to exit this investment on or before the 5^th year of the investment. The Co-Applicants will sell their respective hotels and distribute the proceeds to their shareholders.
• The ruling held that each share of the Co-Applicants will constitute an “equity share” and therefore a “qualifying share” and that neither of the Co-Applicants will constitute a “controlled group company” for so long as they do not hold more than 70% of the total equity shares, irrespective of the fact that the Applicant may invest more than 70% of the aggregate share capital in each of the Co-Applicants in monetary terms.
• The Applicant and Co-Investor can then get a deduction for the funds invested in the Co-Applicants in terms of the venture capital company regime.

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