The OTO has discovered a previously unidentified issue relating to SARS repeatedly conducting verifications that could be contributing to delays in the revenue authority finalising assessments. This issue was found during an analysis the OTO has been conducting to determine possible root causes of certain delays in paying out refunds, specifically in cases where SARS was not finalising verification cases within 21 days.
It is important to note that SARS has the right to select a taxpayer for an audit, verification or inspection on a random or a risk assessment basis in terms of section 40 of the Tax Administration Act (TAA). This also gives SARS the power to conduct multiple audits, verifications and inspections on a specific assessment period of a taxpayer. However, during the monitoring process, it was noted that there are repeat verification cases which the OTO believes are inappropriate and are a waste of SARS’s resources.