“Tax season” commences on 1 July and, at this time of the year, large numbers of taxpayers fall victim to tax-related scams so you need to be extra vigilant.
“Tax season” commences on 1 July and, at this time of the year, large numbers of taxpayers fall victim to tax-related scams so you need to be extra vigilant.
Every year these scams change and the techniques used by the perpetrators become increasingly professional and sophisticated.
Criminals target unsuspecting people in many ways to try to obtain personal information which could be used in fraudulent activities at a later stage.
A common method is a fake email which usually contains links to fake forms and false websites made to look like the 'real thing'.
The purpose of the email is to try to dupe you into submitting personal information.
Another method commonly employed by criminals is to contact people by telephone or sms and pretend to be representatives of SARS or from a bank.
These interactions may be a request for your bank account and other personal details or to threaten you with legal consequences relating to unpaid tax bills or other accounts.
Sound advice would be never to open or respond to emails from unknown sources and to be very wary of emails requesting personal, tax, banking and eFiling details (login credentials, passwords, pins, credit / debit card information, etc.).
Fraudsters often use email addresses that appear to come from SARS such as “returns@sars.co.za” or “refunds@sars.co.za” and indicate that you are eligible to receive a tax refund.
Often you get such an e-mail when you are, in fact, expecting to receive a tax refund, which makes it even more believable.
SARS and reputable banks will never ask you for personal information such as bank account, credit or debit card details over the phone or via email.
It is also extremely unlikely that such an institution will demand immediate payment of outstanding accounts or taxes without giving you the opportunity to question or appeal the amount outstanding.
They will never require the use of a specific payment method to settle debts and importantly will not threaten to bring in local police or other law-enforcement groups to have you arrested for not paying outstanding accounts or taxes.
If you're unsure as to the validity of an email, letter or phone call relating to tax matters, you are well advised to first contact a qualified professional for advice before responding to any such communication.
Are you ready for tax season?
To make sure things go smoothly, taxpayers are advised to accumulate all necessary information and documentation and submit their returns to the South African Revenue Service (SARS) on time.
Failure to do so may result in stiff penalties and interest being imposed by SARS.
Provisional taxpayers (those taxpayers who earn all or some of their income from sources such as business activities, property rental, investments and royalties) have until the end of January to submit their returns to SARS.
The deadline for non-provisional taxpayers who file their returns electronically (eFiling) is the end of November, while the deadline is the end of September for those non provisional taxpayers who do not use the eFiling system.
* Rands and Sense is a monthly column, written by Ross Marriner, an accounting and tax practitioner and a certified financial planner.
