A proposed group tax system for South Africa

Abstract

This study is concerned with the taxation of corporate entities in South Africa. More particularly, it explores and evaluates the manner in which groups of companies are presently dealt with for tax purposes, considers international best practice and makes recommendations for reform of the South African corporate group tax regime. The law in South Africa currently treats each company in the corporate group as a separate taxable unit, ignoring the fact that the companies in the corporate group, under the common control of the parent company, act as one economic unit and should accordingly be regarded as a single enterprise for tax purposes. Internationally, the tendency to tax the corporate group as a single enterprise is becoming increasingly common and most countries have introduced formal group tax systems in recent years. The aim of this study, therefore, is to propose an appropriate group tax system for South Africa. The study adopts a legal doctrinal research approach. It finds that the recognition of the single enterprise principle under the current corporate tax restructuring regime is complex and fragmented and fails to adequately recognise economic unity in corporate groups. It recommends the introduction of a formal group tax system. The study makes a contribution by developing a method or framework to be used to design a suitable group tax system for the South African context, by determining the optimal design options in respect of each of the seven identified structural elements, based on current tax policy objectives, taking account of the limitations of the two main design options, as well as the relief provisions and the restrictions that exist in the South African tax system. The method is then applied in order to recommend a formal group tax system for South Africa. The need is identified for future studies that will focus on the detailed implementation of these design parameters, particularly the rules to be used to calculate the tax base.