Individual Tax Mastery: Know What’s Taxable, What’s Deductible, and What’ll Get You Flagged

Filing individual tax returns is more than just data capture—it’s technical, detail-driven work that must stand up to SARS scrutiny. This session equips tax practitioners with the knowledge to confidently assess income, apply deductions, and prepare accurate, defensible individual returns. Because if you’re filing on guesswork, you’re putting your clients—and yourself—at risk.

3 CPD units 2 July 2025 1 presenter

What will set you apart

By completing this course you will gain the following competencies

By attending this webinar you will gain the following competencies
✅ What counts as taxable income across employment, commissions, investment, freelance and fringe benefits
✅ Which deductions are allowed under current SARS rules—and where practitioners often get it wrong
✅ How to correctly apply tax rules for retirement annuities, medical aid, donations, travel and home office
✅ How to handle provisional taxpayers, including penalties, estimates and timing
✅ How to assess supporting documents for compliance and completeness

Event breakdown

Income Inclusions: What SARS Wants to See – Salary, commission, lump sums, and investment income – Fringe benefits: travel allowances, company vehicles, subsidised loans – Foreign income and local taxation obligations – Rental and side-hustle income (and when it becomes a business)
Understanding Allowable Deductions – Section 11(a) general deduction formula: what qualifies – Commission earner deductions vs salaried employee limitations – Medical aid, out-of-pocket expenses, and disability – Retirement annuities, donations, and home office claims – Travel logbooks and apportionment: how to get it right
Provisional Tax and Individuals – Who qualifies and who doesn’t – How to calculate estimates properly – Avoiding under-estimation penalties – When a client needs to file, even if auto-assessed
Documentation and Evidence – What documents are needed for each claim type – How to check for completeness and tax law alignment – SARS audit trends and what’s being challenged most
Getting the Return Technically Correct – How to use eFiling efficiently (brief walkthrough) – Common mistakes on ITR12s and how to avoid them – Real examples of faulty vs correct returns—and what SARS does with each

Category: TaxationType: CPD CourseCPD category: Tax

Description

Every individual tax return is a mini risk profile—especially when your client has multiple income streams, partial records, or high deductions. This session dives into the technical tax rules that apply to individuals, ensuring you know exactly what to include, exclude, and flag. We’ll tackle key problem areas like commission earners, investment income, provisional tax, and allowable deductions—giving you the confidence to complete returns accurately and defend them if needed. This is technical tax training for real-world practitioners who want to file right the first time.

Presenters

Ettiene Retief — Ettiene is an experienced accountant, business advisor and tax practitioner with over 30 years of experience in taxation, accounting, corporate law and compliance. He runs a specialist tax and corporate advisory practice and has extensive experience engaging with SARS, National Treasury and professional bodies on tax policy and legislation. Ettiene is also a seasoned lecturer, author and speaker, regularly presenting on taxation and related technical topics.

You will earn a certificate

On successful completion you will receive a certificate for 3 CPD units in Tax.

Requirements

Laptop, desktop, or mobile device with internet access
Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome, Safari, or Firefox browser