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Am I still required to lodge tax returns in South Africa?

Posted 13 November 2014

I am a South African citizen who has been living overseas for several years. I left South Africa before registering for a Tax File Number and I have never lodged a return there. I have been working overseas and paying tax over here to the tax office. My question is, should I have been lodging tax returns in South Africa for all these years? Are there penalties or fines for not lodging a tax return for all this time in my case or will I be able to go through the 'formal emigration' process so that I am not required to lodge returns in the future? Alternatively, If I want to remain a resident for tax purposes in SA, can I just start lodging tax returns from now on or will there by questions asked about why I haven't lodged returns for several years?

TaxTim TaxTim says:
13 November 2014 at 22:51

You will not be taxed on the income earned overseas so you do not need to worry about that. You can register for a tax number here and begin paying on the income earned now.

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