The 30th of this month (January 2015) marks the deadline for provisional taxpayers (individuals and trusts) to pay their taxes. Doing your taxes can be a daunting task but doesn’t necessarily need to be. PATC (Professional Accountants and Tax Consultants) is going to provide you with a few tips to stay on top of your taxes and deadlines.
1. Make yourself a “padded” deadline
Most successful people work on a tight time schedule and stick to their deadlines, your tax deadlines should be treated in the same way. Follow PATC on your preferred social platform (Google+, Facebook or Twitter) and you will be up to date with all the relevant SARS deadlines and reminders. Once you have marked the dates provided by PATC (Professional Accountants and Tax Consultants), give yourself a date prior to that as a “pad” (try one to two weeks before the actual date), this date will remind you of the approaching deadline and help you to get the necessary documentation organised before it is too late. This self-imposed deadline will help avoid any unseen circumstances getting in the way of your filing too.
2. Your deadlines need to be visible
Find a system that works for you. You might be a pen and paper kind of person, make sure your looming deadlines and important reminders are written legibly and perhaps brought to your attention in a bright colour. Write your dates on your desk calendar or inside your diary and make sure to look at them every day. If you prefer to work on your PC/laptop or phone, then use the App or calendar you prefer and set reminders so that you don’t forget.
3. Meet Your Deadlines
Meeting deadlines is seldom about getting work done for yourself. Your work will almost always affect someone else – almost like a broken down telephone. If one of the links is late then the other links will be late too. Therefore you need to meet the SARS deadlines so that they can do their jobs too.
Want help directly from SARS?
Visit them at the branch closest to you or contact the SARS contact centre with your query: 0800 00 SARS (7277). They also offer tax workshops and self-service processes. Visit the SARS website for more details.
Please do not hesitate to contact PATC (Professional Accountants and Tax Consultants) for any of your accounting or tax requirements.
