Tax News

Author: Lameez Omarjee. Cape Town – Although the higher VAT rate will be a challenge for household budgets, an analyst says it is the correct way for government to go about raising tax revenue. On Wednesday Finance Minister Malusi Gigaba announced in his budget speech that the VAT rate would increase one percentage point to 15%, as of April 1 2018. This is expected to raise an additional R22.9bn to help plug the tax revenue shortfall of R48.2bn.

Author: Jaco Leuvennink (Fin24). Cape Town – Although a cloud of political uncertainty hangs over his head, Finance Minister Malusi Gigaba’s budget presented to the National Assembly represents a fairly good balancing act in a difficult fiscal environment. The budget is a team effort. It is therefore once again probably a good testimonial to the sober and competent team of officials at the National Treasury, who produced the documentation. Gigaba himself described the budget as tough, but hopeful. This is probably a fair assessment.

Author: Daniel Silke. WHICHEVER way you look at it, Budget 2018 was always going to be punitive and it sure was. All South Africans, especially the poor, are being made to pay for both the excesses of the Zuma era as well as the failure to enact and enable growth-orientated economic policies. The rise in value-added tax (VAT) and fuel levies is largely an attack on the poor and presents a gamble for newly-elected President Cyril Ramaphosa as he seeks to revitalise his own political party ahead of the 2019 elections.

Author: Carin Smith (Fin24). Cape Town – The property market, which is fuelled by sentiment, and Budget 2018 on the back of the election of President Cyril Ramaphosa are expected to go a long way towards reaffirming investor confidence in real estate, according to Dr Andrew Golding, chief executive of the Pam Golding Property group. Golding said an interesting aspect of the Budget Speech is the proposal that some 195 000 government-owned properties with an estimated value of over R40bn would either be better used or sold in the short to medium term. This could unlock revenue as well as opportunities for property development and redevelopment.

Author: Jaco Leuvennink (Fin24.com). Cape Town – The government will raise an additional amount of R36bn in taxes in the coming fiscal year through an increase in the VAT rate to 15%, as well as below-inflation adjustments for personal income tax brackets. That means the government will collect more income tax, but does it mean you will pay more or less income tax in the next year? It all depends on increases in your salary over the next year. If your salary goes up, you will pay more, but if it stays the same, you will actually pay less. Looking at the tax tables, people earning from R85 000 to R150 000 per annum will pay R432 per year less income tax.

Cape Town – South Africans will be paying a higher rate of VAT for the first time since 1993 from April 1. Finance Minister Malusi Gigaba announced on Wednesday that the VAT rate will be increase by one percentage point from 14% to 15%, and is expected to raise an additional R22.9bn. Some basic food stuffs, as well as paraffin, will remain zero rated. The increase is part of tax policy proposals included in Gigabas maiden budget to raise R36bn in additional tax revenue for the 2018/2019 financial year.

Cape Town – The 2018 budget is an example of robbing the poor to buttress the rich and is anything but a Robin Hood budget, according to Anglican Archbishop Emeritus Njongonkulu Ndungane. The Archbishop said that far from taxing those who can afford to pay, the governments budget effectively robs the poor of any hope in the short term of improving their lot.

Author: Jaco Leuvennink (Fin24). Cape Town – Building on the sense of a new beginning created by President Cyril Ramaphosa’s State of the Nation Address on Friday, Finance Minister Malusi Gigaba’s Budget Speech in the National Assembly on Wednesday afternoon was all about rebuilding and restoration in challenging times. This is a tough but hopeful budget,” he said at the start of his speech. This is probably a fair comment, seeing that the risks and pressures were also acknowledged.

Finance Minister Malusi Gigaba delivered his maiden 2018 budget speech on 21 February 2018. The highlights of the tax related budget proposals announced by the Minister are as follows: As from 1 April 2018, the VAT rate increases from 14% to 15%. As from 1 March 2018, the Donations Tax rate increases from 20% to 25% in respect of donations in excess of R30 million. As from 1 March 2018, the Estate Duty rate increases from 20% to 25% in respect of the value of dutiable estate in excess of R30 million.

CDH Special Edition Budget 2018 Alert Cliffe Dekker Hofmeyr Tax-and-Exchange-Control-Alert-Budget-Speech-2018-21-February-2018