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> Evaluating performance

> Gold hits 18-month high

> Pay less estate duty

> Why lending will resume

> Positive platinum demand

> Breaking the habit

Today, 22 November 2009

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Yesterday, 21 November 2009

› SACP attacks Malema

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The joy of selling or buying a property may be short-lived if your tax affairs are not in order.

According to Gavin Goërtz of KHFG Attorneys, to ensure tax compliance, the SA Revenue Service (Sars) has started looking into the affairs of sellers and buyers when application is made for a transfer duty receipt or exemption.

This receipt or exemption is filed at the Deeds Office for purposes of registration of a transfer.

Sars 'will check'

Sars will check whether both parties are registered for tax purposes and whether their tax returns and the payment of any assessments are up to date.

Any problems will then be communicated to the conveyancer who has been appointed to attend to the registration of transfer.

Should such problems not be resolved to the satisfaction of Sars, the transfer process may be delayed as Sars may withhold the issue of a transfer duty receipt or exemption until such time as it has taken the necessary steps to ensure tax compliance.

Estate agents must warn you

These steps can include the attachment of property or the appointment of the conveyancer as the agent of Sars for collection purposes. Under such circumstances the conveyancer would be obliged to pay over any proceeds to Sars which may be due to the seller.

Estate agents should therefore warn you, whether you are a buyer or seller of the aforegoing and request you to timeously get your tax affairs in order so as to avoid any delays or nasty surprises occurring in the transfer process.

The same information which has been submitted to Sars for transfer duty purposes may, in due course, be used by Sars to verify that sellers have correctly disclosed the disposal of their property in their tax returns for Capital Gains Tax purposes.

Sars 'efficiency'

This new procedure illustrates how effective Sars is becoming in policing the tax obligations of taxpayers. You're therefore advised from entering into any transactions involving the purchase and sale of immovable property until your tax affairs (meaning outstanding tax returns and outstanding taxes due) are completely in order.

You can contact Sars to sort out your outstanding tax issues.

This article was originally published on www.taxtalk.co.za.