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JEREMY MAGGS: As we reported on the programme yesterday, the South African Revenue Service [Sars] has published details and dates the taxpayers need to know for the 2023 tax season, including a change on how auto assessments are going to be handled this year.
Yesterday, and this is a follow-up, one tax expert told us he didn’t have confidence in the new system. The teething problems had been reported. Here now from the South African Revenue Service is Siphithi Sibeko. Siphithi, a very warm welcome to you. So, first of all, maybe just provide some clarity to us on how this auto-assessment process works and what specific information it’s utilising to pre-populate tax returns.
SIPHITHI SIBEKO: Thank you for the question, and good afternoon to you and to your listeners. The auto assessment comprises third-party data that is received from banks, it’s received from medical aid, it’s received on your annuity, and a host of other related third-party data information is then put through machine learning, the AI; and data is used to then deduce what becomes of the overpayment and then what is due to yourself.
So the system is almost 100% foolproof. It’s a system that is based on taxpayer information, and that information, as I say, it’s aggregated through the algorithms, and based on that, if there’s a refund that is due to a taxpayer, that is made available to the taxpayer.
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Now, what we said this year is, once you receive auto assessment, if you agree with everything, you don’t need to do anything. However, if you feel that there’s information that has not been included, you are allowed to make that necessary adjustment through our eFiling platform and then submit that information to us.
Of course, the rider is always that once you do that, we’ll put that through the verification in order to assess it, [and] determine that the information that has been put through is information that is permissible, and the deduction that follows, therefore, is the deduction that legitimately has been put through by a taxpayer.
JEREMY MAGGS: Siphithi, let me, with respect, try to push a flaw in your argument, if I can. It’s your use of the phrase almost 100% accurate. How are you ensuring accuracy because taxpayers insist on accuracy when auto-assessing, giving the reliance on that third-party data?
SIPHITHI SIBEKO: So the information at our disposal, we want to believe, it’s foolproof because it’s information that you trade by. If there’s any interest you generate from the banks, it cannot be but the information that is there. The information on your medical aid, it cannot be but the information that is available there.
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However, you would have instances where, for instance, you pay out of pocket. So that information [Sars] would not have sight of that. That is why you are then allowed to make those adjustments that Sars would not have sight of, if there are any, and those then get incorporated when using our eFiling platform. Take those additions that you think that Sars has not included them, not because Sars has [omitted it], but it’s information that would be at your disposal that Sars would never have sight of.
JEREMY MAGGS: Given that some taxpayers have found unexpected funds in their accounts, how many mistakes in this process have been made so far?
SIPHITHI SIBEKO: We still as yet are investigating on our side. You have almost 3.5 million auto assessments, and I know if there’s one, it’s one too many, but one wants to believe that almost 3.4 million to nearly 3.5 million people that have received their auto assessment, the vast majority have expressed delight and happiness with what they have.
There may well be that there may be one or two, even if it’s two to 100, as I said, it’s one too many. We would want an almost 100% perfect situation.
But where there has been a mistake, a person engages with Sars, and Sars clarifies and rectifies whatever the mistake there may have been.
The technology, as we all would want to believe, should be 100% perfect, but, as you know, there may be one or two instances that may have gone wayward, but those are then being addressed and attended to.
JEREMY MAGGS: I need a very quick answer to this. I’m assuming that measures are in place to protect taxpayer information during the process. That there’s not going to be a breach of security here.
SIPHITHI SIBEKO: Certainly not. Our laws that we administer dictate that taxpayer confidentiality is topmost. So whatever we do, we have that in mind, informing any of our actions.
JEREMY MAGGS: Thank you very much indeed, Siphithi Sibeko from the South African Revenue Service.
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