- National Treasury announced the reversal of the 0.5 percentage points VAT hike.
- Legal experts warn the reversal is not finalized.
- Finance Minister plans to introduce a new Rates Bill without the VAT hike.
- Appropriation Bill and Division of Revenue Bill will be withdrawn to adjust expenditure.
- Treasury admits changes will take weeks, beyond the 1 May implementation date.
- Section 7(4) of the VAT Act allows the Finance Minister to change the VAT rate.
- The Act does not allow further changes within 12 months.
- Parliament must endorse or change the rate through a bill.
- The VAT hike is part of the already adopted Fiscal Framework.
- A court order is needed to halt the VAT hike before 1 May.
- The Democratic Alliance and EFF are challenging the Fiscal Framework adoption.
- A ruling is expected by 29 April.
- The DA seeks a ruling on the Finance Minister’s powers to change VAT.
Source: businesstech.co.za
Note that this post was (partially) written with the help of AI. It is always useful to review the original source material, and where needed to obtain (local) advice from a specialist.
