Sars swallows payout

IRP5 ERROR: FUNDS FROM TWO-POT TAKEN BECAUSE OF UNRESOLVED CASE

- Jarryd Westerdale

Petrol attendant's money lost due to mistaken identity.

A garage attendant in Joburg's northern suburbs lost his entire two-pot payout due to an unresolved case of mistaken identity. Isaac Makhuthudisa spent two years fighting to rectify an error in the SA Revenue Service's (Sars) system, then lost thousands, even though he thought the matter was concluded.

This week, Makhuthudisa received a text message from Sars demanding an outstanding amount owed by someone else.

Sars first contacted Makhuthudisa in 2022, demanding close to R30 000.

Feeling the amount he earns could not have accumulated such a balance, he approached Sars to query the amount.

After failed e-mail and telephonic attempts to have his query addressed, he went to a Sars branch in mid-2023.

There, it was revealed that his tax profile was linked to a business owner with a business address in Olifantsfontein.