A new study at Stellenbosch University (SU) has found that a relatively unknown piece of legislation could be a new ace up the sleeves of the South African Revenue Service (SARS) as it tries to catch shareholders who hide behind a company to avoid paying their taxes.
“Section 20(9) of the Companies Act 71 of 2008, allows the SARS commissioner to pierce the corporate veil or disregard the separate legal personality of a company as a remedy against impermissible tax avoidance when taxpayers use companies predominantly to achieve a tax benefit,” says Dr Albertus Marais, who recently obtained his doctorate in Mercantile Law at SU. He is the director of the Cape Town-based tax consulting firm AJM.

Dr Marais joins Benito Vergotine in conversation on The Honest Truth, listen here!