The public’s response to the South African Revenue Service’s (Sars) call on tax returns is satisfying but nowhere near what is desired, Sars said on Monday.
”We are satisfied, but it would have been better if we had gone as far as registering four million,” said Sars spokesperson Adrian Lackay.
”The registered number is better than compared to last year at this stage, but there’s still a significant number outstanding,” he said.
This year, Sars tried to obtain as many tax returns as possible by introducing a campaign where its officials visited areas of employment and helped people fill in the forms.
On Tuesday, officials will assist in registering Transnet, Toyota and Nissan employees throughout the country.
Lackay said this initiative is aimed at defeating the tendency of waiting until the last week of registering, when long queues and delays for taxpayers at Sars branches offices occur most often.
South African employees earning more than R60 000 a year are required by law to disclose their earnings to Sars for tax purposes.
Sars urged taxpayers who have not filed their returns to do so urgently to avoid the last-minute rush of October 31.
Electronic copies of personal-income tax returns are available on many company intranet sites, at Sars branch offices and on Sarsefiling.co.za. — Sapa