Your Tax Deadlines for February 2022

/in /by

 

  • 7 February Monthly Pay-As-You-Earn (PAYE) submissions and payments
  • 25 February Excise Duty payments
  • 25 February Value-Added Tax (VAT) manual submissions and payments
  • 28 February Value-Added Tax (VAT) electronic submissions and payments, PIT & CIT Provisional Payments where applicable.

Seven Crucial Tax and Other Issues to Address When an Employee Dies

/in /by

“Employees are the key to your success… Treat them well!” (Ron Kaufman)

 

The death of an employee can be a difficult situation in any company, but particularly so in smaller businesses where employees work more closely together and often consider each other more than just co-workers.

In addition to handling the emotional aspect of such an event, companies must also keep the business running and take care of various compliance and tax issues.

Here are seven crucial issues to address swiftly after the death of an employee.

Here are seven crucial issues to address swiftly after the death of an employee.

  1. Contact with the employee’s familyObtain the name and contact details of a person from the deceased’s family with whom the company can communicate about a range of matters, including funeral details, collecting company property such as keys, equipment, (company cars, computers and the like) and credit cards, finalising employee benefits procedures, and the return of the deceased’s personal belongings.

    It is also helpful to have the details of the executor of the deceased employee’s estate, who is also the ‘representative taxpayer’ for the deceased and responsible for finalising the deceased’s financial and tax affairs.

  2. Inform employees and establish internal processesNotify other employees with respect, tact and care, providing as much information as possible. Nominate a company representative to answer employees’ questions; to accept flowers, communications and donations on behalf of the deceased’s family; and to make appropriate plans for memorials, tributes or gestures.

    Realise that some people are better able to deal with such an event than others. Encourage employees to seek the help of lay therapists or religious advisors, and to provide mutual support to each other. Also consider arranging grief counselling and providing time off as needed, as well as for attending the funeral, preferably on a paid basis.

  3. Keep the business runningUpdate business roles and functions and reassign space and equipment to reflect the employee’s death in a respectful and compassionate manner.

    To minimise disruption to the business, assign the deceased’s tasks, functions and responsibilities to other team members, and redirect phone, voicemail, email and mail communications as soon as possible. Collect company property and address security issues as per the company’s established termination procedures.

    Inform clients, suppliers and other stakeholders who are affected of the change, while beginning the process of finding a suitable replacement.

    Compensate for those employees who find it difficult to focus or make more mistakes, especially where this presents a safety issue, for example, in manufacturing or production environments.

  4. Calculate the final remuneration and benefitsIn calculating the deceased employee’s final renumeration, the normal procedures for terminating employment must be followed: all hours worked until the date of death must be compensated, any outstanding leave must be paid out and, if the employee had any savings or loans with the company, these need to be finalised. Depending on the circumstances, payment will be made to the executor of the deceased estate, to the family or to a beneficiary.

    At the same time, finalise employment benefits, such as medical aid and pension or provident fund membership, ensuring that all compliance issues are promptly attended to, so the family does not experience delays caused by the company when claiming benefits.

  5. Take care of tax issuesWhether the deceased was registered with SARS or not, and whether there is estate duty payable or not, SARS must be notified of the death of the person. This must be done by the executor of the deceased employee’s estate or by a tax practitioner acting on behalf of the deceased or the company.

    The employer must provide the executor acting as the representative taxpayer of the deceased employee with the employees’ tax certificate within 14 days after the employee passed away. The provisions that state that employees’ tax certificates may not be delivered until the EMP501 reconciliation has been submitted does not apply.

    Once the deceased employee has been coded as such by SARS, all outstanding tax returns should be submitted up to the date of death by the executor of the deceased’s estate. This applies to all tax types – income tax, VAT, PAYE, SDL, UIF and estate duty. As soon as all the tax liabilities have been paid in full, a Deceased Estate Compliance (DEC) letter is issued for all taxes except estate duty and an ED clearance letter for estate duty. Any refund due will only be released if all other taxes are up to date, all accounts have zero balances and all outstanding returns have been submitted and processed.

  6. Take care of UIF mattersFollowing the death of an employee who contributed to the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF), the dependants – a spouse or life partner, children under the age of 21 or a guardian of dependent children – can claim benefits from the UIF. The death benefit is the amount that the employee could have claimed if he/she was unemployed and it is paid out in one payment.

    The dependants must apply within six months of the date of death by going to a Labour Centre to complete and submit Form UF126 (for a spouse or life partner) or Form UF127 (for a child).

    The dependants will also need the following from the deceased’s employer:

    • Copies of the deceased’s last six payslips;
    • The employer’s details on form UI19; and
    • A service certificate from the employer.

    They will then receive another document, Form UF128, which needs to be filled in by the deceased’s last employer and then submitted at the Labour Centre.

  7. Take care of Compensation Fund issues

The surviving spouse or dependants of a deceased employee may be able to claim from the Compensation Fund if the employee died while working or as a result of a work-related accident, injury or disease. The Compensation Fund covers most employees.

 

By law, anyone who employs one or more part- or full-time workers must register with the Compensation Fund and pay annual assessment fees, based on the employee’s earnings and the risks of the type of work. Workmen’s compensation is a no-fault system, which means there is no need to prove that an employer was at fault. The compensation awarded does not form part of the deceased employee’s estate and can also not be attached to satisfy a debt.

 

Assisting the deceased’s family in these matters reflects well on the reputation on the company/employer.

Six Tips for Creating a Distraction-Free Home Office

/in /by

“Out of clutter, find simplicity. From discord, find harmony. In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity.” (Albert Einstein)

 

To many people the idea of working from home can seem like a dream. Just avoiding the daily commute makes it worthwhile for many, but add in the benefits that arise from being present for your family, and being able to work the hours that suit you, and suddenly it’s an extremely attractive proposition.

While it definitely does depend on the individual, working from home can present a number of new challenges when it comes to getting work done. Laundry is building up, the home needs cleaning from the weekend, and your TV and fridge are also always on hand.

Luckily there are some small changes anyone can make to ensure their home office is at least as good as a corporate office for concentration, and potentially even better for productivity.

  1. A dedicated workspaceWhile not everyone has the ability to turn one room of the house into an office, it is wise to try and create a dedicated workspace for when you are “at the office”. Even just pushing a desk into the corner of your lounge and working from there will put you in the right state-of-mind for getting your business done, and at the end of the day you can log off and go back to your family life. Sitting in bed to work may be fun for one day, but long term blurring of the lines between the spaces for work and those for play can mean you can never really get away from your job.

    For the same reason it may be wise to have a “work computer” and one for social media and recreation. Use the work computer the same way you would the one at any corporate office. When you turn it on there will be no non-work apps to distract you, and you should immediately be able to get into a work state of mind.

    Ideally your work desk should face out a window, or failing that, towards a wall so you aren’t constantly looking at the distracting build-up of dishes, or the temptation of the television. Put up some work-related art, keep the table organised and you will find that when you sit down you are already thinking of working.

  2. Noise is a distraction tooIt’s not just visual things that can be distracting. The noises of a home can also take you out of that important work mindset. If you live alone this will be a lot easier, but if you have a family around, their activities can break your train of thought as easily as if they were tugging on your shoulder.

    You don’t need to go overboard but finding ways to mute the external noises will help you to concentrate. Consider changing your office door from a hollow one to a solid wood one. Adding weather-stripping or a door sweep along the bottom of the door can also cut down on the amount of sound pollution that seeps in. If you use a corner of a common room for your office, consider investing in a pair of noise-cancelling headphones to ensure your thoughts remain entirely undisturbed. 

  3. Get an office chair By now you will no doubt have spent a day working from a dining room chair, or on a couch and will know that this is not an effective way to do it. There is a reason offices splash out on their chairs. Dining room chairs are intended for short stays whereas an adjustable office chair will enable you to set your ideal height and maintain good posture throughout a full workday. No one’s watching to see whether you’re sitting up or slumping, but your back will let you know if there’s been any cop-out.

    Giving yourself a sore back or painful legs is a great way to ensure you get no work done, so apart from getting a good chair, make sure you take scheduled breaks away from your computer. Be sure to look away from the screen every 20 minutes and don’t be afraid to get up and walk around the house from time to time. A study conducted a few years ago by DeskTime indicated that the most productive interval was 52 minutes of work interrupted by 17 minutes of break. Just don’t allow yourself to get caught up in home chores.

  4. Keep it tidyA cluttered desk may make you look busy, but it isn’t doing you any favours when it comes to focus. You might be surprised by just how much paper can build up doing an average job and often this is something you need to keep under control. Getting decent paper storage is therefore an important thing to consider when building a distraction-free office.

    If your job is particularly paper-heavy you may want to invest in a filing cabinet, but for most a couple of desk drawers or shelves should be fine. Set aside a designated place for incoming mail or work on the to-do list, another for projects in process, and a third storage area for completed projects or paid bills. Organising your computer files in a similar way, to keep upcoming work and work in progress in a designated accessible area and finished projects stowed away in a cloud database, may help you stay on top of the jobs you need to do.

  5. Be Work Ready When you sit down to work you want to be able to do just that. In order to make sure you will be at your most efficient your workspace needs to be work-ready. You don’t want to have to interrupt your flow with a trip to the shops to get printer paper for example. Invest in your workspace so that it’s the same as you would find in any corporate building.

    Make sure you have the stationery and things you need to get the job done, and this includes having a good internet connection. How easy is it to get to your router if you need to reset something? Do you have enough bandwidth for online meetings? What is behind your desk? What will your colleagues and clients see when they get you on camera?

    Have everything on hand that you need, and make sure it’s up to date and in working order, because trying to make things work with the wrong equipment, or dealing with problematic old technology, are real distractions. As an added benefit, the investments you make in your home office, and the equipment you use, may be tax deductible (but there are many factors at play here so professional advice is essential before you claim!).

  6. Have a plan for your family and pets

    Children and pets are probably going to be the biggest distractions to your day, so make a plan to ensure neither interrupt you. Children must understand that while you are working only emergencies are worth interruptions.

    Pets may be a little simpler – replace their squeaky play toys with chew sticks, and move their beds close to you so they feel comfortable lying quietly with you even though you aren’t being attentive. Good luck by the way with persuading your cat not to sit on your keyboard – this article may help but all bets are off!

    Make sure you plan to take time out to spend with both the children and your pets, so they know that you are not ignoring them, just busy when you are at your desk. Taking your dog on a lunchtime walk, or playing with your children for an hour on a sleepy summer’s afternoon can really invigorate you for the rest of the day, and are the absolute perks of working from home as well. You might as well enjoy it.