SARS’ PLANS TO TAX INCOME EARNED ABROAD
Category General News
SARS’ PLANS TO TAX INCOME EARNED ABROAD
“© DotNews, republished with permission”
As the law currently stands, if a South African tax resident works abroad for 183 days or more (of which 60 days must run consecutively) in a year, that person is not taxed locally on foreign based earnings.
Treasury has however released draft legislation which if adopted will repeal this exemption.
For many South African employers and employees this could have serious consequences, particularly cash flow implications.
The proposed changes
When the ex-Minister of Finance presented his Budget in February 2017, he proposed that residents working abroad should be taxed if the country they worked in charged no income tax. It is inequitable, he argued, that these people should pay no tax at all.
However, the draft new law goes much further than the ex-Minister suggested and proposes taxing any differences between taxes charged abroad and South African tax rates. If, for example, you work abroad for more than six months and the tax rate in the other country is 25%, you will be liable in South Africa for any difference between that 25% and the rate at which you would be taxed in terms of our law (the maximum tax rate here is 45%).
The new rules are proposed to come into effect from 1 March 2019 (i.e. the 2020 tax year for individuals).
Implications for employers and employees
When employers have staff working abroad, salary packages are designed around the tax free element or reduced tax paid offshore. Employers will thus have to reconsider these packages to ensure that employees receive the same take home income.
In cases when employees work abroad at lower tax rates, they are taxed in the country where they work. They will, based on the proposed changes, also be taxed in South Africa on any difference between the offshore country’s tax rates and local tax rates. The employees will receive a tax credit for the tax they have paid abroad. However, they will only be able to do this at the time when they submit their tax return. Receiving a refund from SARS and getting this credit approved by SARS is likely to be a time consuming process. These employees will thus be penalised on a cash flow basis, which would also increase the employers’ administration workload as they may have to consider bridging loans to employees awaiting their tax credit.
These earnings will usually be subject to Double Tax Agreements (DTAs) which vary by country (we have signed DTAs with 76 countries). Understanding and applying these various DTAs will be onerous for both employers and employees.
Employees’ potential reaction and the danger for our economy
Employees who work abroad are generally speaking highly skilled and globally marketable. They could therefore easily choose to take up tax residency in a low tax jurisdiction. This will mean renouncing South African tax residence status, which will trigger 18% capital gains tax on their assets.
The likelihood is that South Africa will lose a significant number of skilled individuals to offshore countries. We already have a skills shortage in South Africa and to lose more skills will have a further detrimental effect on the economy. Many multinational companies use South Africa as a springboard into Africa and employ staff in countries on the continent. These individuals could decide to re-locate elsewhere, such as Mauritius, which offers low tax rates and sophisticated financial services.
Businesses and employees affected by this potential change to the Income Tax Act should follow the process of the draft laws until they become legislation – probably at year end or early next year. This is because the draft laws have been opposed by sections of the business community and thus there may be changes made when the legislation is finalised. Consider also participating in the process by making your own submissions on this draft legislation - the result may be a better outcome for all involved.
Author: DotNews
