South Africa Case Law

SAMU v Commissioner for the South African Revenue Service (VAT 1788)

SAMU v Commissioner for the South African Revenue Service (VAT 1788) [2023] ZATC 14; 86 SATC 406 (30 August 2023)

Court

Tax Court

Case number

VAT 1788

Judges

A Makume, B Mathibela, M Mahlare

The court found that the appellant was not entitled to claim input tax on accommodation and meal expenses for project-specific employees, as these constituted entertainment under section 17(2)(a) of the VAT Act and the appellant did not meet the statutory exceptions. The appellant did not charge employees for these expenses, nor was it in the business of supplying entertainment. The precedent set in AB (Pty) Ltd v Commissioner for SARS was applied, confirming that such expenses are entertainment for VAT purposes. However, the court accepted that the appellant's error in claiming input tax was…

Source excerpt

• Input Tax Deductions
• Entertainment Expenses
• Understatement Penalty
• Vat Act Interpretation