Tax Consulting SA said the programme allows for the disclosure of underdeclared income or understatement of any tax liabilities – regulated by the Tax Administration Act. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
VDP implementation forms part of the tax authority’s strategic objective to provide for easier compliance, said the group.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Tax Consulting SA said, however, that there are legislative requirements that one should meet to benefit from VDP, one being – ensuring you are a registered taxpayer with SARS and are up to date with tax filing obligations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Once you have met such requirements, you can reap the benefits of a VDP agreement with SARS, including:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- \n
- Confirming the disclosure and what it relates to;<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- The waiving of any penalties that may have arisen from the default, except in instances of gross negligence and intentional tax evasion;<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- The confirmation of the payable amount and date it is due;<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- The granting of full immunity from criminal prosecution in respect of the default disclosed:<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/unnamed-1.png\")
<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\nPolls from Tax Consulting SA’s recent webinar found that many people are not seeking the VDP route, with 60% of respondents indicating they have a small number of clients with under-declared or undeclared income, only 5% said they have proceeded with the VDP in these instances.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“Concerningly, only 83% of attendees stated that they have only followed the VDP route in a few cases, and not for all their non-compliant clients,” Tax Consulting SA.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The table below shows the responses from practitioners:<\/p>\n\n\n
\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/image002-4.png\")
<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n43% of attendees said that navigating communication and integration with SARS is the aspect of the VDP process they are most concerned about.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“Other attendees (23%) noted that it was the gathering and organizing of the necessary documentation for the application,” said Tax Consulting SA.<\/p>\n\n\n