Tax Revenue Highlights SA’s Dependence On Small Number Of High Income Earners

Just 125,000 people pay one-fifth of the R1.5 trillion the South African Revenue Services (Sars) collects in taxes.

Bottom line, South Africa needs its wealthy citizens to keep the faith. That’s why they’re no big tax increases this year.

Finance Minister Tito Mboweni said it would be hard to do so as it would rather be in a position to cut but the economy was in too much trouble for that.

The country has a disproportionate dependence on the small number of globally mobile high-income earners.

Most of the money government collected was from just 0.2% of the population who paid 20% of all of its taxes.

Pre-Budget speculation that VAT would increase and that a new expat tax would be introduced in March came to nothing.

There are, however, plans to lower corporate tax rate to bring it in line with global norms but there was no time frame on that.

EWN