Page 164 - Juta's Indirect Tax

s 190
TAX ADMINISTRATION ACT 28 OF 2011 s 196
(a) the ‘debtor’ undertakes to pay an amount which is less than the full amount of the tax debt due by that ‘debtor’ in full satisfaction of the tax debt; and
(b) SARS undertakes to permanently ‘write off’ the remaining portion of the tax debt on the condition that the ‘debtor’ complies with the undertaking referred to in paragraph (a) and any further conditions as may be imposed by SARS;
‘debtor’ means a taxpayer with a tax debt; and
[De nition of ‘debtor’ substituted by s. 73 (b) of Act 39 of 2013 – date of commencement deemed to have been 1 October 2012.]
‘write off’ means to reverse an outstanding tax debt either in whole or in part.
[De nition of ‘write off’ substituted by s. 73 (c) of Act 39 of 2013 – date of commencement deemed to have been 1 October 2012.]
193 Purpose of Chapter
(1) As a general rule, it is the duty of SARS to assess and collect all tax debts according to a tax Act and not to forgo any tax debts.
(2) SARS may, when required by circumstances, deviate from the strictness and rigidity of the general rule referred to in subsection (1) if it would be to the best advantage of the State.
(3) The purpose of this Chapter is to prescribe the circumstances under which SARS may deviate from the general rule and take a decision to ‘write off’ a tax debt or not to pursue its collection.
194 Application of Chapter
Parts C and D of this Chapter apply only in respect of a tax debt owed by a ‘debtor’ if the liability to pay the tax debt is not disputed by the ‘debtor’.
[S. 194 substituted by s. 54 of Act 44 of 2014 – date of commencement deemed to have been 1 October 2012.]
Part B
Temporary write off of tax debt (ss 195–196)
195 Temporary write off of tax debt
(1) A senior SARS of cial may decide to temporarily ‘write off’ an amount of tax debt—
(a) if satis ed that the tax debt is uneconomical to pursue
as described in section 196 at that time; or
(b) for the duration of the period that the ‘debtor’ is subject to business rescue proceedings under Chapter 6 of the ‘Companies Act’, as referred to in section 132
of that Act.
[Sub-s. (1) substituted by s. 55 of Act 44 of 2014 – date of commencement deemed to have been 1 October 2012.]
(2) A decision by the senior SARS of cial to temporarily ‘write off’ an amount of tax debt does not absolve the ‘debtor’ from the liability for that tax debt.
(3) A senior SARS of cial may at any time withdraw the decision to temporarily ‘write off’ a tax debt if satis ed that the tax debt is no longer uneconomical to pursue as referred to in section 196 and that the decision to temporarily ‘write off’ would jeopardise the general tax collection effort.
196 Tax debt uneconomical to pursue
(1) A tax debt is uneconomical to pursue if a senior SARS of cial is satis ed that the total cost of recovery of that tax debt will in all likelihood exceed the anticipated amount to be recovered in respect of the outstanding tax debt.
Prelex
Wording of sub-s. (6) in force until promulgation of Tax Administration Laws Amendment Act, 2015
(6) A decision not to authorise a refund under this section is subject to objection and appeal.
191 Refunds subject to set-off and deferral
(1) If a taxpayer has an outstanding tax debt, an amount that is refundable under section 190, including interest thereon under section 188 (3) (a), must be treated as a payment by the taxpayer that is recorded in the taxpayer’s account under section 165, to the extent of the amount outstanding, and any remaining amount must be set off against any outstanding debt under customs and excise legislation.
[Sub-s. (1) substituted by s. 61 of Tax Administration Laws
Amendment Act, 2015 – date of commencement: date of promulgation of Tax Administration Laws Amendment Act, 2015.]
(2) Subsection (1) does not apply to a tax debt—
(a) for which the period referred to in section 164 (6) has not expired or suspension of payment under section
164 exists; or
[Para. (a) substituted by s. 72 of Act 39 of 2013 – date of commencement deemed to have been 1 October 2012.]
(b) in respect of which an instalment payment agreement under section 167 or a compromise agreement under section 204 applies.
(3) An amount is not refundable if the amount is less than R100 or any other amount that the Commissioner may determine by public notice, but the amount must be carried forward in the taxpayer account.
CHAPTER 14*
WRITE OFF OR COMPROMISE OF TAX DEBTS (ss. 192–207)
Part A
General provisions (ss. 192–194)
192 De nitions
In this Chapter, unless the context indicates otherwise, the following terms, if in single quotation marks, have the following meanings:
‘asset’ . . .
[De nition of ‘asset’ deleted by s. 68 of Act 21 of 2012 – date
of commencement deemed to have been 1 October 2012.] ‘Companies Act’ means the Companies Act, 2008 (Act
71 of 2008);
‘compromise’ means an agreement entered into
between SARS and a ‘debtor’ in respect of a tax debt in terms of which—
[Words preceding para. (a) substituted by s. 73 (a) of Act 39 of 2013 – date of commencement deemed to have been 1 October 2012.]
Prelex
Wording of sub-s. (1) in force until promulgation of Tax Administration Laws Amendment Act, 2015
(1) If a taxpayer has an outstanding tax debt, an amount that is refundable under section 190, including interest thereon under section 188 (3) (a), must be treated as a payment by the taxpayer that is recorded in the taxpayer’s account under section 165, to the extent of the amount outstanding, and any remaining amount must be set off against any outstanding debt under the Customs and Excise Act.
* Chapter 14 was amended by s. 69 of Act 21 of 2012 by the deletion of single quotes from the word ‘asset’, wherever it occurs in Chapter 14.
156 Juta’s IndIrect tax 2016