VAT Registration

VAT is a Value Added Tax indirect form of tax charged on the sale of goods & services. This tax is also known as goods and services tax. An indirect tax is, when tax is collected from somebody other than the person who in fact bears the cost of the tax. Businesses are entitled to recover VAT on goods & services that they buy to make additional supplies and services sold to end-users directly or indirectly, but personal end consumers of goods and services cannot claim back VAT on purchases. Thus, the total tax imposed at each stage in the economic chain of supply is a constant fraction of the value added by a business to its goods & businesses has to borne the cost of collecting the tax rather by the state. Implementation of VAT has resulted in discouraging tax swindle and tax prevarication.

You are legally responsible to register for VAT if the income you earned from selling goods or from supplying services is more than R300 000 per year, or is sensibly expected to exceed this amount. A person can also register voluntarily if the revenue for the twelve-month period exceeds R20 000 or is likely to exceed R20 000 only after a period time as a result of the nature of activity being conducted. Apply for registration on form VAT 101 (Application for registration), which may be downloaded from the forms section below or obtained from the local office of the South African Revenue Service (SARS). The form must be submitted to your local SARS office in individual by the representative vendor or rightfully authorized registered tax practitioner not later than 21 days from the date of liability.