SARS. Help Please.

Mila

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Hi I need advice from someone inside SARS or working with objections. PLEASE.

My mom received a notice of R75 000 outstanding from 1995.
She can't log a notice of objection, because their system don't take objection notices older than 2007.

What happened now is that she can't get a Suspension of credit, because you can only do that if you have a notice of objection.
She can't appeal the outstanding tax because you have to have served a notice of appeal.


A bit of history.
The outstanding tax is for an IRP5 handed in by her current company in 1995, Where she wasn't employed at at the time. She started with them in 2002 before that the last time she was employed was 1992 at Company Y

She has gone to her current employer and they agreed and sent letters that it was impossible for her to have an IRP 5 from then, since she did not work there.

She has been in SARS Polokwane several times now and it goes around in circles.
You have to Send a letter of objection
You can't log a letter of objection because it is later than 2007
You can not appeal this
You can't get a notice of suspension
First you have to hand in a letter of objection
Which she cant because her objection is for something in 1995....

They want her to sign that she admits to the debt and then they will look into the case, which she refuse to do since she did not work at company X in 1995 she wasn't employed at that time either.

She did go to an attorney he wrote a letter to SARS, and this was dismissed.
They Asked her she has to proof she never received communication from them regarding this matter. How do you proof you never received their letters?
She has asked them to show her where they posted the letters, which they can't.

She is petrified that they are going to take her house. Or put a garnish order on her salary. She isn't very well off and the advice she got now was to go to an advocate.. Which she don't have money for.

What I need to know is how do we go around the fact that she can't hand in a notice of objection?


(She found out about this debt last year when she submitted her tax return for the first time before that she didn't earn enough or didn't have anything to claim back. PAYE)
 
It is such a mess, If you need me to explain something just ask please :)
 
I see nobody replied yet so let me think out loud on this one....I'm no expert so this is just my 2 cents.

My thinking is that one need to be able to show that one at the very least tried to comply with SARS. Thus far you/your mother have tried. As an additional step [not sure this will help, see what others have to say] I will get an accountant to do my tax returns for all those years in question, even if they are zero returns and have these submitted to SARS.

You must also keep a detailed record of any interaction you've had or will have with SARS i.e. dates, times, person(s) spoken to etc... If possible try and communicate via email so you have a written record as well.

One do not know where this thing can go and best to keep record of everything and everybody.

As said, see what others have to say.
 
Thanx. I will tell her. I'm having Mr Mila's tax consultant look at her things.

It seems so stupid.

The employer has confirmed that she was not employed with them in 1995, and asked sars to show how the IRP5 was submitted. Radio silence.
 
Thanx. I will tell her. I'm having Mr Mila's tax consultant look at her things.

It seems so stupid.

The employer has confirmed that she was not employed with them in 1995, and asked sars to show how the IRP5 was submitted. Radio silence.

That silence part was my thinking. If you do nothing they can just turn around and say you ignored everything however, if you have submitted every return and sent them the letter from the employer [with proof that it was sent] then at least you have something to stand on should this whole thing go through the proverbial fan.

My wife also had an issue with SARS a while back in regards to returns of 2004/2005 which was apparently never submitted. It took us just over a year to resolve everything at a cost of around R7,000 an in the end they wrote back all the penalties and refunded her R230.
 
That silence part was my thinking. If you do nothing they can just turn around and say you ignored everything however, if you have submitted every return and sent them the letter from the employer [with proof that it was sent] then at least you have something to stand on should this whole thing go through the proverbial fan.

My wife also had an issue with SARS a while back in regards to returns of 2004/2005 which was apparently never submitted. It took us just over a year to resolve everything at a cost of around R7,000 an in the end they wrote back all the penalties and refunded her R230.

Thanx. :)
 
I hope everything works out for your mom but in case it doesn't she could try this as last resort:
AN EAST London businesswoman was so frustrated with the local SA Revenue Services that she chained herself to a chair in their offices yesterday to force it to refund her about R140000.

Sandy Nienaber’s stunt paid off – with SARS promising to pay her on Friday.

Speaking from a local coffee shop afterwards Nienaber, who owns St Andrews Manor B&B in Selborne, said a letter given to her yesterday stated that 2008 and 2009 have been verified against the documentation supplied by her and that the refund should appear in her account on Friday

She said her frustrations started about a year ago after completing her 2008 tax returns. It was decided she would be refunded about R140000 – but this never happened.

After being sent from one official to another since February 2009, she finally snapped and decided to chain herself to one of the chairs in the reception area.

A number of employees gave her curious looks as they walked past her until a security guard arrived and tried to remove Nienaber from the chair, but failed.

She finally attracted the attention of some senior managers who tried to assist her.

“I’m not able to open my business in King William’s Town because I don’t have a tax certificate, either.

“I can’t tender for business.

“I’ve been here so many times the security even knows me by name,” said Nienaber.

She said two SARS officials even went to her house to “audit” her documents.
..........

Source:http://goo.gl/bs0C01
 
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:D She just want it to be cleared up. Even just being able to submit the Notice of objection would be a start. :D :D
 
firstly, and most importantly, what is that date of this assessment?
 
firstly, and most importantly, what is that date of this assessment?

The first one? 1995.
IF you are asking when she realized it, last tax season. When she submitted her tax return and they let her know it was under investigation or something. That scared her and she contacted them after a while asking if she did something wrong, they told her about this from 1995.
 
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I'm sure SARS only require you to keep documentation for up to 5 years.
So if they now trying to force 18 years of penalties, they can go and jack themselves.
 
I'm sure SARS only require you to keep documentation for up to 5 years

Go try and tell them that. As mentioned, had a similar thing happen in 2012 irt 2004/2005 returns and we just had to find all the documents. Luckily for us it was all backed up on a old hard drive. SARS did not give a *****, just said if we cannot prove them wrong then the penalties stand and must be paid. They, at that stage, already issued an order to wife's employer to recover said penalties from her salary, as easy as that.

We eventually submitted everything together with proof that she did actually submit the return back in 2005 and asked about the R7,000 it cost us to prove them wrong and they just shrugged their shoulders at us.
 
mila i'm sorry to hear of your mom's predicament but this assessment is prescribed. therefore you cannot lodge an objection against it. i don't know why the consultants at SARS have not told you this. my advise to you is to get a loan of sorts and settle this debt as soon as possible otherwise start making payments of as much as you possibly can. if you can afford R2000.00 per month, then please start making payment. this is a large amount of money and SARS will attach assets to the value of.
 
mila i'm sorry to hear of your mom's predicament but this assessment is prescribed. therefore you cannot lodge an objection against it. i don't know why the consultants at SARS have not told you this. my advise to you is to get a loan of sorts and settle this debt as soon as possible otherwise start making payments of as much as you possibly can. if you can afford R2000.00 per month, then please start making payment. this is a large amount of money and SARS will attach assets to the value of.
Even if it is not her debt?
 
mila i'm sorry to hear of your mom's predicament but this assessment is prescribed. therefore you cannot lodge an objection against it. i don't know why the consultants at SARS have not told you this. my advise to you is to get a loan of sorts and settle this debt as soon as possible otherwise start making payments of as much as you possibly can. if you can afford R2000.00 per month, then please start making payment. this is a large amount of money and SARS will attach assets to the value of.

Whoa there, Celine. This ain't her mom's "debt". Also you'll need to explain the prescription here as it's ambiguous the way you've described it.

Mila, have you not contacted the company who submitted this IRP5 in her name? Why and how did they do this to begin with? It's odd. Get them to legally rescind it and admit the error on their part...
 
Whoa there, Celine. This ain't her mom's "debt". Also you'll need to explain the prescription here as it's ambiguous the way you've described it.

Mila, have you not contacted the company who submitted this IRP5 in her name? Why and how did they do this to begin with? It's odd. Get them to legally rescind it and admit the error on their part...
She did and they did send the letter, they also want to know where the IRP 5 comes from.

The thing that makes it more confusing for everybody is that she does now work for the company, she only started there in 2002 though and the IRP 5 Dates back to 1995. The Company has no history of the IRP 5 in question.

It is such a confusing mess that I don't think anybody wants to work with it.
 
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