Today, on the eve of the new tax season, trade union Solidarity released a useful guide on the filing of individual tax returns. The annual tax season during which individuals submit their tax returns at the South African Revenue Service (SARS) will officially commence tomorrow.

According to Solidarity spokesperson Moira-Marie Kloppers, the purpose of the guide is to equip taxpayers with the necessary information so that they don’t have to pay more tax than they should.

“Unfortunately, South African taxpayers don’t get decent value for their taxes. Corruption, poor service delivery and large scale waste are all too prevalent. For this very reason we want to empower taxpayers with the knowledge they’ll need so that they don’t unwittingly pay more that they should by law,” Kloppers said.

The guide includes tips and basic guidelines to facilitate the process of filing tax returns. These include, among others: the deciphering of codes used on tax certificates, the documents you need to submit and how and where these can be obtained, as well as information on which expenses are tax deductible expenses.

The full guide can be downloaded here.

Issued by Solidarity