President Ramaphosa stated in his national address on 25 July 2021 that “the payment of excise taxes by the alcohol sector will be deferred for a period of three months, to ease the burden on the sector as it recovers.”
Following our enquiries on the matter, we have finally received feedback from National Treasury in the form of an Explanatory Note on the Excise Deferment (download pdf here), which confirms that the deferral will be considered “on application, setting out the circumstances justifying the deferral”.
Regrettably the deferral is not an automatic or blanket deferral, as assumed from the President’s national address.
Businesses will have to apply, “in terms of rule 105.01 to 105.4 for deferral of payment and each case will be considered on its merits. They could make an application for the next 3 months, if they can motivate why such and extension is needed. An application can be refused. If a client submits today and the application is approved they would not be liable for penalties and interest. However, if it is refused they would be. Submissions can be submitted to the following mailbox: osc@sars.gov.za,” advises a senior Treasury official.
It is also advisable to be very specific in the application – e.g. ask for a 90 day deferral, post the current due date of payment; make reference and be specific to ask that no interest to be add during the 90-day period; refer to specific and unique circumstances of your business, not only Covid-related, but also due to riots in KZN/Gauteng, logistical challenges in Cape Town Port, and also the shortage of bottles and the delay to import from other countries. All the applications will be presented to a committee and the sooner the application is submitted, the better to receive a response.
Also see previous notes on the APPLICATION PROCESS.
This is unfortunately the reality, at this very late stage of the month. We will continue to engage with government on this matter.
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