Highlights
- The Revenue Service is rolling out what it has internally dubbed “Project AmaBillions”
- the South African Revenue Service (SARS) is believed to work on a major special initiative focused on tax debt collection
- As SARS targets a haul of R2.006 trillion in revenues for the 2025/26 fiscal year, the message is unequivocal: every non-compliant taxpayer must contribute their share
(SARS) is intensifying its efforts to recover tax debts from South Africans across the board as part of their new initiative, “Project AmaBillions.” This approach marks a significant turn in the government’s strategy to close the budgetary shortfall resulting from the reversal of a proposed VAT hike, as announced by Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana.
Tax Consulting SA has highlighted SARS’ tactical recruitment drive, with plans to onboard up to 500 new employees initially, and potentially expand this number to between 500 and 1,000. This workforce boost aims to enhance the service’s capacity to tackle undisputed tax debts, a segment of the financial landscape that has long been perceived as carrying substantial untapped potential.
At the crux of this strategy is the objective to recuperate an estimated R70 billion, a sum poised to significantly offset the forecasted R75 billion shortfall cited by the National Treasury over the medium term. This gap emerged following the scrapping of a proposed 1% VAT increase. It demonstrates the government’s commitment to stabilizing the nation’s financial position without resorting to new taxation measures that could strain an already burdened economy.
Keitumetse Sesana from the South African Institute of Taxation (SAIT) has noted the lack of a formal launch for the project but acknowledged the clear indications from SARS’ public communications about a revitalized focus on outstanding tax debts. SARS Commissioner Edward Kieswetter has repeatedly stressed the importance of a dedicated Compliance Programme aimed at tracking and addressing over 5 million unsubmitted returns and focusing on individuals who are above the income threshold yet remain unregistered for tax purposes.
Further bolstering its efforts, SARS has secured an additional R7.5 billion from the National Treasury, with a recommendation for another R1.5 billion to facilitate the hiring of 2,338 staff members. These resources are aligned with SARS’s expanding compliance initiatives, which have impressively generated R301 billion in the 2024/25 fiscal year, marking a 16% increase in revenue compared to the previous year.
Jashwin Baijoo from Tax Consulting SA concurs with the strategic direction of this intense recovery operation, attributing it to the agency’s broader compliance themes. He points out that SARS remains open to engaging with taxpayers on payment arrangements and, where necessary, considering tax debt write-offs for those experiencing genuine financial distress. Notably, in the 2023/24 financial year, SARS wrote off a considerable R36.15 billion in taxpayer debt, underscoring its capacity to accommodate taxpayers’ financial situations while maintaining rigorous collection standards.
As SARS targets a haul of R2.006 trillion in revenues for the 2025/26 fiscal year, the message is unequivocal: every non-compliant taxpayer must contribute their share. This pragmatic focus on existing tax debts is viewed as a preferable alternative to imposing new taxes within an already fragile economic environment, with the overarching aim of bolstering state resources through diligent tax compliance and recovery efforts.
