South African Revenue Service (SARS) commissioner, Edward Kieswetter, has welcomed the unanimous judgment of the Constitutional Court confirming the revenue collector\u2019s right to withhold taxpayer information.<\/p>\n
The position was confirmed in the matter of Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane against the Commissioner and others.<\/p>\n
In a statement, Kieswetter said the case was about the fundamental principle that taxpayer information is confidential, and a sacrosanct SARS pillar in its quest to achieve voluntary compliance.<\/p>\n
\u201cEvery taxpayer must have the confidence that SARS will fight to protect this right without fear, favour or prejudice,\u201d Kieswetter said.<\/p>\n
He said there was a strict duty on SARS to preserve and protect taxpayer confidentiality.<\/p>\n
This case, he said, \u201chas never been about defying the Public Protector, nor about protecting the interest of any particular taxpayer.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEvery taxpayer is equal before the law, and SARS has the duty to protect taxpayer confidentiality, irrespective of their position in society, and apply the law evenly regardless of the persons involved,\u201d Kieswetter said.<\/p>\n
The Constitutional Court judgment \u201cfirmly confirms\u201d the confidentiality of taxpayer information, as contained in the Tax Administration Act of 2011, said SARS in the statement.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis confirms my position to resist the Public Protector\u2019s subpoena to access taxpayer information. I welcome the Constitutional Court\u2019s judgment, as it provides the clarity on this important principle of taxpayer confidentiality.<\/p>\n
“This was the substantive aspect of the [declaration] we sought from the courts in the first place,” said the Commissioner.<\/p>\n
SARS, he emphasised, also respects the other conclusions contained in the Court\u2019s judgment.<\/p>\n
SARS also acknowledged remarks by Justice Mbuyiseli Madlanga that the Public Protector\u2019s Office \u201cis an important cog in our constitutionalism\u201d and that the efficacy of the Office must be preserved for posterity.<\/p>\n
Kieswetter, in this respect, accepted and endorsed the Constitutional duty of every organ of State, including SARS, to assist and promote the functions of the Office of the Public Protector.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are committed to contribute to a well-functioning democracy,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n