Blog

By Bernard Schoeman on 01 July 2020.

It is no secret that the future of the Accounting Profession can no longer rest upon compliance work only.  As systems evolve and become more automated, less importance is place...

By Bennie Groenewald on 25 June 2020.

The shutdown of Planet Earth has caused not only a health crisis but also an unprecedented drop in economic activity, the extent of which we haven’t seen in recent history. M...

By Joané Willemse on 22 June 2020.

The year 2020 has seen a drastic change in our lifestyle both professional and personal as the world tries to contain and control the COVID-19 outbreak.  The most notable change...

By Bernard Schoeman on 13 February 2020.

While this article focuses on entrepreneurs, it applies equally to those following a career. A common trap for most entrepreneurs is to become bogged down in the daily operat...

By Bernard Schoeman on 14 June 2019.

SARS has indicated that taxpayers who meet ALL of the following criteria need NOT submit a tax return for 2019: Their total employment income for the year before tax is no...

By Bennie Groenewald on 30 April 2019.

So, you’ve made a mistake with your taxes and the revenue authority imposed a hefty understatement penalty. This misstatement could be as a result of a default in submitting ...

By Bernard Schoeman on 13 March 2019.

Expats working abroad are concerned by the proposals laid out by Treasury in 2017 on how such taxpayers should be taxed. The historical and current position is that South Afric...

By Bernard Schoeman on 22 February 2019.

The challenge for any employer is how to keep their employees happy. There are many things an employer can consider, but, extra cash in the backpocket of any employee will alway...

By Bernard Schoeman on 22 February 2019.

The answer, without a doubt, is a resounding YES. For too long, practitioners have relied on the results kicked out by the online tax calculation facility on eFiling. It is o...

By Elaine Viljoen on 21 January 2019.

“Prediction is very difficult, especially if it is about the future” Normally the market and economic commentators react favourably to interest rate decisions of the Monetar...

By Bernard Schoeman on 06 November 2018.

Directors of companies enjoy a privileged position in that they are responsible for the running and administration of the entity entrusted to them.  This includes being aware of...

By Bennie Groenewald on 22 October 2018.

Whoever imagined having a work-life balance has to admit that it hardly exists in any successful business today and at best, does not mean an equal balance. Some smart and su...

By Bennie Groenewald on 09 October 2018.

We’ve entered an era where disclosure of foreign income to the taxman, is trending. In 1776, Adam Smith a Scottish philosopher and economist, wrote An Inquiry into the Nature...

By Nico Viljoen on 26 September 2018.

SARS has the power to gather information to ensure that taxpayers have complied with their fiscal obligations.  Besides, SARS may require taxpayers to submit documentation in su...

By Nico Viljoen on 19 September 2018.

By now your personal tax filing is done and dusted and you have already received your refund from SARS. Right? We know that this best-case scenario may not necessarily be app...

By Elaine Viljoen on 10 September 2018.

The real question is - can you afford not to? Starting a business is an exciting prospect, after all, we know that being your own boss is the best. However, once the dust set...

By Yolandi Smeiman on 04 September 2018.

Contrary to popular belief, the compilation of Annual Financial Statements of small businesses is not only necessary for a company’s tax compliance needs, but also a requiremen...

By Nico Viljoen on 20 August 2018.

Tax legislation provides for an individual taxpayer to claim certain expenses incurred during a year of assessment against the income received. However, the type of expenses you...

By Nico Viljoen on 13 August 2018.

While crypto trading and mining are prohibited in many countries, digital currency seems to be just taking off in South Africa, with President Cyril Ramaphosa announcing his sup...

By Nico Viljoen on 06 August 2018.

Currently, South Africans who work overseas must disclose all their income to SARS; however, they may then claim exemption on their employment income physically earned outside S...

By Nico Viljoen on 30 July 2018.

With no major new tax legislation making headlines in 2018, you may assume the tax laws are staying much the same. We however know that's not quite true. It part of our task to ...

By Nico Viljoen on 23 July 2018.

From 1 July it’s that time again – when you must present your hard-earned…erm…earnings to SARS and hope for a return somewhere between a pair of Froggies and a pair of Gucci’s… ...

By Nico Viljoen on 16 July 2018.

Tax by its very nature is complicated. Yet if you thought the South African tax system is difficult to navigate, think again. According to the Financial Complexity Index for 201...

By Nico Viljoen on 09 July 2018.

Important notice: 2018’s tax filing season is here and this year you have 18 days less to submit your tax returns, with tax season now open for filing from 1 July 2018 and clos...

By Nico Viljoen on 30 June 2018.

Between 1 July and 31 October, anyone who earns a salary or whose salary is structured with benefits such as a travel allowance, provident fund or medical aid have to complete a...

By Bennie Groenewald on 07 June 2018.

In this, the last part of a series of tips of how to grow your business, I deal with “working hard versus working smart” to achieve success, in fact, I believe hard work is stil...

By Bennie Groenewald on 29 May 2018.

Did you know that 75% of business owners admit that they should have consulted an expert at an earlier stage of their business journey? Many have admitted that they either use a...

By Bennie Groenewald on 23 May 2018.

The brand of your business is not just a visual representation of your products or services; it is the essence of your business. It represents your core business, which, aside f...

By Bernard Schoeman on 22 May 2018.

By the end of May each year every employer is meant to have uploaded the IRP5/IT3a certificates of their employees to SARS via the EMP501 reconciliation process.  For this reaso...

By Bennie Groenewald on 18 May 2018.

In today’s competitive business environment, meeting your clients’ expectations just isn’t good enough. The golden rule is to listen to what your clients need and then give t...

By Nico Viljoen on 08 May 2018.

Bitcoin / Cryptocurrency- I hold Bitcoin / Cryptocurrency in a Bitcoin / Cryptocurrency wallet and exchange them for another currency when I arrive in South Africa to pay for m...

By Bennie Groenewald on 30 April 2018.

There’s a saying that goes, “Don’t look back, you’ll miss what’s in front of you.” Don’t keep looking back at setbacks, always move on and focus on what lies ahead. In fact, ...

By Bennie Groenewald on 25 April 2018.

The conventional wisdom about entrepreneurs, is that following the textbook approach to entrepreneurial success is your biggest mistake of all. Well known entrepreneurs have ...

By Bennie Groenewald on 12 April 2018.

Customers want to associate with the person behind the business product or service. Share your journey, vision, goals and personal story of inspiration. They will reward your...

By Bernard Schoeman on 05 April 2018.

The Tax Administration Act  now requires tax practitioners to register with a recognised controlling body and with SARS. This means that only the following parties may legally s...

By Bennie Groenewald on 20 March 2018.

Supporting the duty of care, renders big benefits for any business. Just as we choose to associate with good people in our lives, customers like to associate with good companies...

By Bernard Schoeman on 19 March 2018.

The process of submitting the EMP501 reconciliations to SARS does not have to be complicated as long as you know how.  Let's start at the beginning... Who Should Register for...

By Bernard Schoeman on 12 March 2018.

Employees may find that their payslips reflect various deductions.  Some deductions are for loans or advances they took during the month or an earlier period.  Some may be for c...

By Bennie Groenewald on 12 March 2018.

Research has shown that the average person may have up to five social media accounts and spend 100 minutes a day on various forms of social media. So, don’t be slow and out o...

By Nico Viljoen on 07 March 2018.

A 'growth mindset' person A 'growth intelligence mindset' person seeks challenges and believes that failure is not a proof of unintelligence but an encouraging springboard for ...

By Bennie Groenewald on 06 March 2018.

As business people often say, “There is no perfect road or one less travelled on.” Take a chance and push those boundaries, it is the best way to learn about your capabilities o...

By Bennie Groenewald on 27 February 2018.

You need to spend your time, energy and resources on something that creates and delivers value. Remember, it’s whether your customers find value in what you offer. Value in this...

By Bernard Schoeman on 26 February 2018.

It goes without saying that Governments require their citizens to pay tax in order to contribute to the development of the country. The question of how much tax to pay is far...

By Nico Viljoen on 16 February 2018.

Yet most of those executives are shying away from such a challenge. According to a recent study by MIT Sloan and Capgemini, only 15% of CEOs are executing a digital strategy, ev...

By Bennie Groenewald on 16 February 2018.

Be brutally honest and acknowledge your specific personal weaknesses. Then surround yourself with the right people to balance those weaknesses with their own specific strengths....

By Bennie Groenewald on 09 February 2018.

But then finding the right “ingredients”, a good and well-tried recipe together with the effort that it will take, can turn an opportunity into a successful and sustainable busi...

By Bernard Schoeman on 09 February 2018.

The problems experienced in old-fashioned payroll systems are well documented.  Locating employment contracts, making manual errors and reporting inadequacies are but a few to m...

By Nico Viljoen on 08 February 2018.

Flow from IoT in the next 10 years,  B2B applications will account for approximately 70% of the value. Global dimension, and emerging markets, whose manufacturing-intensive econ...

By Bernard Schoeman on 08 February 2018.

It's often surprising to see how little business owners and employees invest in the tools available to them.  Perhaps they have devoted a great deal to their education/qualifica...

By Bernard Schoeman on 07 February 2018.

The working landscape has changed.  More employees than ever before work from home in order to avoid time wasted commuting to/from the office.  People working for themselves als...

By Bennie Groenewald on 30 January 2018.

A lot has been written for example, “The Best Way To Become Rich Is By Trading Using This Cryptocurrency” by http://cryptocurry.com and many others to the extent that it has now...

By Bernard Schoeman on 30 January 2018.

People have registered trusts in the past for various reasons.  At one stage, it was even fashionable in SA to register a trading trust which operated just like any business.  H...

By Yolandi Smeiman on 29 January 2018.

What is XBRL?  “What barcoding did for products is what XBRL will do for financial information – Consistency and uniformity in financial reporting is key for our future” - Se...

By Bennie Groenewald on 29 January 2018.

Many South Africans today, make a living of working offshore, for various reasons that I will not elaborate on in this article. People more and more work in countries where they...

By Bennie Groenewald on 26 January 2018.

Bill Gates, the entrepreneur, philanthropist and co-founder of Microsoft, warned in December 2000 that “The Internet will have profound effect on the way we work, live and lear...

By Joané Willemse on 26 January 2018.

The introduction of cloud accounting software has caused quite a disruption in the accounting industry.  Many small business owners believe that it is a luxury to have a profess...

By Elaine Viljoen on 26 January 2018.

Separate Your Income and Expenses from Business Income and Expenses If you are an individual freelance contract worker and pay provisional tax, it becomes essential to keep y...

By Elaine Viljoen on 26 January 2018.

Though it is possible to register the business at CIPC without assistance from tax practitioners and accountants, it is certainly not recommended. Knowing exactly which docum...

By Elaine Viljoen on 26 January 2018.

Instructions on how to register a business are shared below to make the process a bit easier. However, should you want professional assistance or simply prefer the convenience a...

By Bernard Schoeman on 24 January 2018.

A well-drafted business plan has the following advantages for your business: It provides a detailed understanding of how your business works. It helps you to monitor pro...

By Bernard Schoeman on 24 January 2018.

Section 12J was introduced in 2009 already, but, following changes to legislation in 2014, it has started gaining momentum.  This section now allows for a 100% write-off of any ...

By Bernard Schoeman on 29 November 2017.

Business owners often see their accountant as a person who helps them to prepare their financial statements and may even have a begrudging attitude for this function.  We have s...

By Bernard Schoeman on 29 November 2017.

As at today's date individuals who work for a single employer and who have no other income e.g. from investments are not required to submit a tax return if their annual gross ea...

By Bernard Schoeman on 29 November 2017.

SARS has come to realise that one way of tightening controls over the collection of employees tax is through their annual and bi-annual PAYE reconciliations .  This has led to g...

By Nico Viljoen on 29 November 2017.

Let’s look at these stages in more detail: Unfreeze: The first stage of the process of change per Lewin’s method involves the preparation for the change. This means that at...

By Nico Viljoen on 29 November 2017.

However, when faced with a problem, it is often difficult to visualize the outcome.  In fact, the result could be very different from what one anticipates or expects.  One may b...

By Nico Viljoen on 29 November 2017.

The main change is that “the first R1 million of foreign remuneration to be exempt from tax in South Africa if the individual is outside of the Republic for more than 183 days a...

By Nico Viljoen on 29 November 2017.

Although a taxpayer may make use of a tax practitioner, the ultimate responsibility still rests with the taxpayer to ensure that its tax affairs are in order.  The only inst...