Taxman writes off R36bn of citizens' debt – annual report

The latest South African Revenue Service (Sars) annual report demonstrates the revenue collector's willingness to permanently or temporarily write off taxpayer debt, with a staggering R36.15 billion written off in the 2023-24 financial year.

- Jashwin Baijoo & Junaid Bhayla

Sars's amicable approach to debt relief may come as a shock to taxpayers, especially in light of the revenue collector's strategic objectives, which commissioner Edward Kieswetter has been driving.

From these objectives, the most daunting for taxpayers is that of making noncompliance hard and costly. When read in conjunction with the laundry list of potential criminal convictions in the tax Acts, even the smallest of mistakes may cost taxpayers.

Despite stricter enforcement on non-compliant taxpayers, including hefty fines and stints behind bars, Sars remains committed to helping taxpayers who seek voluntary compliance and is trying to make it easy.

For those who are early adopters of the correct legal compliance approach and simply cannot afford to settle their entire tax liability in one shot, options like debt compromises and deferrals remain available.

Compromise clock is ticking