SARS – Guides

Tax Guide for Share Owners (Issue 8)

SARS has published Issue 8 of the Tax Guide for Share Owners
This guide does not constitute an “official publication” as defined in section 1 of the Tax Administration Act 28 of 2011 (“TA Act”) and does not create a practice generally prevailing under section 5 of that Act. It is also not a binding general ruling under section 89 of Chapter 7 of the TA Act.

The guide examines:
  • The tax consequences of holding shares as trading stock compared to holding them as capital assets;
  • How to distinguish between profits of a capital and revenue nature using common law principles and statutory rules;
  • The determination of a taxpayer’s liability for capital gains tax;
  • How dividends are taxed; and
  • Various corporate actions that can impact on the determination of a person’s liability for tax.

The guide covers the following topics relating to shareholding in detail:
  • Income tax v capital gains tax
  • Capital v revenue
  • Income tax
  • Capital gains tax
  • Corporate restructuring events
  • Death


Find a copy of the guide here.
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