hours to accommodate Small Business Tax Amnesty applications
25 May 2007
Thousands of small businesses have already applied for the Small Business
Tax Amnesty. In the past few days Sars offices have been flooded with calls and
queues have formed at many of our service points to file amnesty applications.
With the Small Business Tax Amnesty deadline of 31 May 2007 fast approaching,
Sars and its customs offices in outlying areas will be working longer hours in
response to the demand.
All revenue offices will be open tomorrow, Saturday, 26 May, from 8h00 to
13h00 and on Monday, 28 May to Thursday, 31 May until 18h00. Sars officials
will be on hand during these longer hours to assist small business operators
with all amnesty related queries and with completing the amnesty application
forms. This is one of the many ways in which Sars is going the extra mile to
improve the service that it offers to our citizens. Sars officials will
intensify its amnesty registration drive in the last few days of the amnesty
window period and will be deploying thousands of its officials countrywide to
visit small businesses at places where they ply their trade. In addition, a
short message service (SMS) will be sent to taxi operators as well as public
benefit organisations to alert them of their qualification for the amnesty and
the looming deadline.
This is the last chance for small businesses to regularise their tax affairs
and avoid prosecution (up to five years imprisonment) and fines. The small
business tax amnesty was announced by the Minister of Finance, Trevor Manuel,
in his 2006 Budget Speech. The amnesty period opened on the 1st of August 2006.
Small businesses with a turnover of less than R10 million a year qualify for
amnesty. So if you have defaulted on income tax, VAT and payroll taxes, apply
for the small business tax amnesty before the deadline.
For more information visit any of our offices during these longer hours,
visit our website on http://www.sars.gov.za or contact the amnesty call
centre on 0860 1212 20.
Issued by: South African Revenue Service
25 May 2007
Source: South African Revenue Service (http://www.Sars.gov.za)
