The publication of the regulations followed a period of public comment on draft digital tax regulations which originally intended for the VAT on digital goods to kick in on 1 April.<\/p>\n
![\"iTunes](\"http:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/iTunes-Connect-SA-VAT-notification-via-9to5Mac.jpg\")
<\/a>iTunes Connect SA VAT notification via 9to5Mac<\/p><\/div>\n
App Store prices in South Africa were increased as recently as 1 April 2014 to account for the weak Rand, along with retail price adjustments for Australia, India, Indonesia, Turkey, Israel, and New Zealand.<\/p>\n
Pricing tiers for apps sold in Israeli New Shekels and New Zealand Dollar were decreased, while the other 5 currencies (including South Africa Rand) saw increases.<\/p>\n
Developers decide on prices for their apps based on certain pre-set tiers, which means that developers whose apps are currently on pricing tier 2 or higher could still select a lower tier to reduce (or eliminate) the effects of the increase.<\/p>\n
Queried about the adjustments at the time, a spokesperson for Apple said, \u201cWe made some minor pricing adjustments due to changes in foreign exchange rates and local tax laws.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pricing in other categories of the South African iTunes store such as music, films, and books did not increase on 1 April, but this time a price hike for the other stores could be on the cards.<\/p>\n
According to 9to5Mac, it is likely that the addition of 14% VAT to prices in the South African App Store will spread to to the other web properties.<\/p>\n
This article was first published on MyBroadband<\/a>.<\/p>\n Digital tax will restrict consumer choice<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n New digital tax implementation date<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n Why digital tax is good for South Africa<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\nMore on digital tax<\/h3>\n