Trusts remain a valuable estate planning and asset protection tool, but they also carry ongoing compliance obligations. Many trustees assume that a dormant trust with no income, assets, or activity can simply be left alone. SARS has made it clear that inactivity does not remove a trust’s compliance obligations. With penalties now being imposed for outstanding trust returns, dormant trusts may be attracting more attention than their trustees realise.
Phew! No major tax increases are planned, and taxpayers will benefit from zero “bracket creep” across a range of taxes. While property sellers and buyers will be disappointed that transfer duty thresholds have not increased, there’s reason to get very excited about the 50% increase in the primary residence CGT exclusion from R2m to R3m.
Read on for an illustrative calculation of CGT savings, some of the more important tax tables, and a calculator to show you how much more or less you will be paying in taxes.