On 9 July 2015 the South African Revenue Service (“SARS“) issued a media statement informing allSouth African resident taxpayers, who hold foreign bank accounts, that an investigation was underway and taxpayers were therefore requested to make use of its Voluntary Disclosure Programme(“VDP“) to regularise their tax affairs.
If you have a foreign bank account, and have used that bank account to evade your local or international tax obligations, you have until 12 August 2015 to declare this information under the VDP,after which time SARS will start their auditing process.
Clients are reminded that under the VDP, you will still have to pay any South African tax and theinterest which is due on that tax. However the advantage of making a disclosure under the VDP is that you will be granted relief from penalties and further, you will not be subject to any criminal prosecution.