Die heffing van persoonlike belasting in Suid-Afrika

Abstract: The personal income tax that is levied on the income of individuals is one of the main components of direct taxation in South Africa. The ethical principle of tax fairness, taking into account the conflicting interest between the taxpayer and exchequer to increase and decrease taxes is of particular interest in the levying of personal tax. The principle of tax fairness is used as a criterion in the evaluation of the following aspects of the South African personal tax system: Progressiveness Taxation of fringe benefits Joint taxation Other aspects such as the taxation of capital gains and the taxation of Blacks. In this study it was found that the steep incline of the existing taxation curve contributes to the allowance of fringe benefits and the appeal for a system of seperate taxation. According to the fairness principle equal income, cash or otherwise, should be taxed equally. Fringe benefits should thus be taxed on a larger and a more uniform scale by the receiver of revenue. However, to ensure that it will still adhere to the principle of incomplexity, the quantification of the fringe benefits will have to take place in a simple and clear manner. Taxation of fringe benefits that is not coupled with an increase of the income level on which the maximum marginal rate of taxation becomes applicable, especially in the higher income groups, can be contra-productive...M.Com