Tax & Estate Planning
Reduce your tax and plan for a brighter future
Whether you are an individual or a small to medium sized business, Omne is able to assist with up to date local and offshore tax and estate planning, structuring and opinions. This enables us to achieve the most efficient cash out from hard earned salaries and business earnings.
Minimise Tax Payments. Maximise Estate Value.
Our comprehensive estate planning and fiduciary services will ensure the most tax efficient transfer of assets between generations whilst maximising the value of your estate at all times. We also offer exchange control solutions and emigration advisory services.
Tax Services
Sleep soundly and let us demystify this obligation. We will ensure that all your income tax returns are submitted and make sure you don’t pay a cent more than you need to. Wouldn’t you feel comforted to know that you have appointed a tax specialist who makes it their business to constantly consider all taxes and incentives relative to you as a business, as an individual or for your trust.
Tax is our speciality, and we can take care of all your tax requirements across multiple tax types. This includes income tax, capital gains tax (“CGT”), estate duty, donations tax, withholding tax, securities tax and employee’s tax to name a few. We have experience with many different industries and types of businesses. Business structures include small to medium companies, close corporations, joint ventures, non-profits, trusts, body corporates, voluntary associations, sole proprietors, partnerships, co-operatives and branches, both resident and non-resident.
The end-to-end services include registrations, exemption registrations, SARS e-filing set up, catch up of backlogs, tax clearances, tax directives, all types of local tax return filings, including provisional tax, dividend withholding tax and securities tax, certain offshore tax returns, managing disputes and minimising penalties and interest and meeting with SARS on your behalf when required. Anything tax compliance, we do.
Tax Planning & Structuring
There is no better sight than hindsight. Many businesses think that tax planning is only applicable to large corporations, but they are wrong. It is critical in any small business as well. A reputable and experienced tax professional should handle your tax planning.
Having a 360-degree understanding of one’s tax risks allows small business the opportunity to:
- Understand the tax implications of day-to-day transactions;
- Be as tax efficient as possible;
- Avoid any nasty surprises;
- Manage cash flow to cater for the taxes payable and thereby avoiding penalties, interest and other negative consequences of not having a tax clearance; and
- Maintain a healthy relationship with our Revenue Services.
Tax Consulting & Opinions
All aspects of our financial lives have tax consequences whether in our personal capacity or in business. Our experienced and qualified tax team can provide you with tax consulting services and tax opinions so that you have the confidence to make the right decisions when it comes to tax, having considered all tax risks and unexpected consequences.
We have a team of experts who have the experience and know-how to offer tax consulting services and or to provide written tax advice about the tax treatment and consequences of a particular transaction, or a tax position that is going to be taken by SARS on assessment. Tax opinions provide guidance as to how SARS and the courts are likely to treat a particular transaction or structure.
Estate Planning & Wills
We offer a comprehensive approach to estate planning. This will not only ensure the efficient transfer of assets between generations but will do so in a way that always maximises the value of your estate.
This service includes:
- Consultation and estate structuring;
- The setup of trusts and related fiduciary services;
- The drafting of last will and testaments; and
- Executorships
One of the most important aspects to plan for is cash liquidity on the death of a person. Assets that have been in families for generations often have to be sold to fund death taxes due to insufficient planning. Planning for one’s death protects heirs from having to make these complex decisions. It allows for seamless transfer of assets to your heirs, especially when large indivisible assets are concerned.
Estate planning is an ongoing service and should be updated every year or as circumstances change.
Expert Executorship for Peace of Mind
The last thing you want is for a stranger to take control of your assets after your death. An Executor should be a person who knows your financial affairs well. They should also know the family and family dynamics of the deceased having had a professional relationship with them prior to their death.
A trusted accountant or tax advisor, who has been involved with your estate plan and is familiar with your financial and tax affairs is the most logical person to assist with the winding up of your deceased estate.
Exchange Control Solutions
The purpose of Exchange Control is to prevent the loss of foreign currency resources through transfers abroad of real or financial assets held in South Africa. There has been so much change to Exchange Control regulations since January of 2021, especially in relation to new offshore looping structure opportunities and financial emigration.
We are well placed and experienced to communicate with the Reserve Bank, via your Authorised Bank Dealer on your behalf, to assist in regularising undeclared offshore financial assets, foreign shareholder, and other foreign loans, advise on the statutory requirements for non-resident shareholders and many other requirements. In our experience, people often do not understand that they are breaking the law when it comes to Exchange Control, or they may find that they are unable to repay foreign loans due to unregularized loan agreements, or they are unable to pay dividends to foreigners because they do not hold an endorsed share certificate. Omne has a team that can hold your hand through the process of ensuring you are legal or simply ensuring that you are following the right process.
We can also apply for all the requisite tax clearances from SARS which are required for the offshore movement of funds by South Africa residents or emigrants as well as dealing with the Authorised Bank Dealer to make it all happen.
SARS Emigrations
As of 1 March 2021, financial emigration is no longer an option, and it is now the South African Revenue Services (SARS), rather than the Reserve Bank, that controls the clearances to move your money out of the country on emigration. The Reserve Bank is now simply made aware of the status, through the Authorised Bank Dealer, instead of being the approval body for a financial emigration.
We can assist two categories of people, namely:
- Those people who were born in South Africa, but left many years ago and need to secure their “emigration” or non-residency status; and
- Those people whose emigration is imminent.
The process involves calculating, collating, and documenting all applicable information for the SARS application for Tax Emigration Clearance (TEC), calculating potential exit taxes, coordinating the transfer of funds through the Authorised Bank Dealers and follow ups with SARS to ensure that a TEC can be obtained. There may also be the need to deregister for income tax in South Africa after the TEC has been obtained.
Foreign Investment Tax clearances
Many people are sending funds offshore in their personal names due to the uncertainty of the economy in South Africa and they would rather hold their funds in offshore currencies. Legislation allows South African tax residents over 18 years of age, to send R11 million offshore each year. R1 million of this relates to the discretionary allowance, but the remaining R10 million will require a Foreign Investment Tax Clearance (FIA) from SARS before the commercial banks can send funds offshore. Omne is an expert at obtaining FIA’s.
There are ways to send more than R11 million offshore, but this will require special permission from the Reserve Bank and Omne is also well placed to assist with these applications.
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Make it Possible
Engage with us to professionally take care of your accounting, tax and administrative requirements. Partner with us to bring your business to life and make it the best it can be.