An evaluation of the South African value-added tax on electronic goods and services

Abstract

With the advent of and expansion of the internet, the fourth industrial revolution came into being. This revolution is characterised by simplified by transactions that take place through cyberspace, whereby companies do not need any physical facilities to run profitable organisations. This shift from physical trade to internet-based transactions is called E-commerce. The threat of E-commerce on the loss of revenue by governments did not go unnoticed by the tax authorities across the world. For that reason, South Africa has introduced the Electronic Regulations of 2014 in order to allow for the VAT levying on of E-commerce entities, particularly the ones base outside the Republic. This dissertation analytically evaluates the South African VAT approach on E-commerce.