Dear Subscriber,

In November 2005 it was announced that a landmark judgement had been delivered by a court in Cape Town disallowing the royalty payments made by franchisees for the use by a South African company of certain trademarks. The court ruled that the royalties was expenditure similar to that incurred in setting up a new business and were capital in nature and therefore not deductible for tax purposes.

In March 2006, Daniel Erasmus did a presentation for FASA (Franchise Association of South Africa) on this landmark judgement. Click here to download a copy of that presentation.

Just recently, the Supreme Court of Appeal decided, on the facts before it, that the lower court judgement was wrong and that the taxpayer could deduct its royalty payments.

This case impacts on those who pay royalties and franchise fees. To

discuss this judgement with Daniel, email him at daniel@danielerasmus.co.za

Read all the other related articles on the TAXtalk website on the royalty payments ruling.

TAXtalk's education partner, The International Tax Institute, (ITI), is presenting a tax course on: "Unpacking the Small Business Tax Amnesty"

Some of the important aspects that will be covered in this course are:

• Who does tax amnesty apply to?
• Instances where amnesty will not apply
• General requirements
• Which taxes does amnesty apply to?
• How to apply for amnesty
• What is the effect of a successful amnesty application?

The people who should attend this event are:

• Tax Practitioners
• Accountants and Auditors
• Small business owners
• Members of CC's
• Directors of non listed companies where the shares or members interests are held entirely by natural persons
• Estate executors
• Trustees and beneficiaries of trusts
• Home owners letting a 2nd (or more) homes

Make sure to make your booking NOW. Click here to get detailed information about this event.

Tax Issues
Section 11L of the Income Tax Act deals with reductions in respect of employers' contributions to retirement and other benefit funds. Anton Lockem of PriceWaterhouseCoopers will discussed this matter on Tax Issues. Click here for a summary of the full interview. Tax Issues is broadcast on Mondays at 20h40 and again at 22h40 on SUMMIT TV (DSTV CHANNEL 55).

Get the TAXtalk Magazine delivered to your postal address, receive a weekly tax electronic newsletter and have 24 hours' access to download TAXtalk information and eBooks.

You can get all this by SUBSCRIBING to TAXtalk for R50.00 per month or R600.00 annually. Click here to subscribe online in less than two minutes.

Until next week.
Head of TAXtalk

SUBSCRIBE to TAXtalk before the small business tax amnesty deadline on 31 May 2007 and receive a FREE TAXtalk Magazine subscription pack and be entered into a prize draw for 5 complimentary seminar seats, to The International Tax Institute's Small Business Tax Amnesty Seminar worth R650.00

Go here to subscribe online in less than two minutes.

Dee Bezuidenhout - The Practical Vat Handbook

The Value-added Tax Act came into effect in 1991. 16 years down the line and vendors are still getting their input tax claims wrong! This is a rather serious problem; but one we can help you with.

Interview with Anton Lockem - PriceWaterhouseCoopers

Section 11L of the Income Tax Act deals with reductions in respect of employers´ contributions to retirement and other benefit funds. Anton Lockem of PriceWaterhouseCoopers discussed this matter on Tax Issues.

eTaxJobs is a global job portal exclusively for tax professionals, and an online resource for employers and recruitment firms to advertise their vacancies. eTaxjobs operate in the UK, Europe, USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Africa and around the World.

Available tax jobs for this week are:

• Tax Managers, Hanoi and Hi Chi Minh, Vietnam
• Managers/Senior Managers, Bangkok, Thailand
• Customs Managers/Senior Managers, Bangkok, Thailand
• Tax Opportunities in the Middle East, Dubai, Oman, Saudi, Kuwait
• International Tax Senior/Assistant Manager, Luxembourg

John Frith

Any will that does not have a spouse or registered Public Benefit Organisation (PBO) as beneficiary will effectively be taxed at 25%, even though, similar to donations tax, the promulgated rate of estate duty is 20%

Sanchia Temkin - Professional Services Editor

TAX practitioners who uncover fraud and other tax irregularities related to their clients will be compelled to report them to a new independent regulatory board to be set up by government, according to draft legislation recently released by the South African Revenue Service (SARS).

From personal individual tax to significant company tax changes - the subject is a hotly debated issue throughout South Africa's corporate environment. Tax Issues - every Monday at 20h40pm and again at 22h40pm - demystifies some of the latest developments and issues being discussed in the corridors of power. Tax Issues will cover; The impact of pending new tax laws on individuals and companies, The capital gains tax debate, New SARS initiatives to collect tax Changes to tax benefits, The VAT vs personal tax debate.

Brett Scott - HGIC Financial Coaching

We South Africans are a tough bunch to please. First, our markets survived the transition to democracy in the 1990s. Now that we are enjoying the best bull market in a generation, we have a tendency to pinch ourselves and question whether we are dreaming and continually search for the indicator that is all going to unravel. Sometimes it is important to just enjoy the moment!

Do you have something to say? Do you have an area of interest or expertise that you believe is something you can contribute for the interest of our readers? Do you want to share your views with like-minded people?

If so, send your submissions by email to (janine@taxtalk.co.za), fax (27 11 476 5004) or post (P.O. Box 1650, Gallo Manor 2052) and be heard!

We will publish the best stories and viewpoints on our website &/or in our weekly newsletter.

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Contact Janine at
ads@taxtalk.co.za
(011) 476 5095