Latest SARS annual income tax return filing update for community schemes
25 May 2026 | Alistar Scholtz
The taxation of community schemes and in particular the assignment and delegation of responsibilities within the industry at large has not historically been fully compliant with tax legislation. South African Revenue Services (“SARS”), by means of the Tax Administration Act 28 of 2011 and the Tax Administration Laws Amendment Act 43 of 2024 has clarified the necessary appointments and have called for further and more detailed reporting in respect of the annual income tax returns of community schemes. This article will touch on these matters and focus primarily on sectional title schemes.
It is important to note that for income tax definition purposes, SARS does not differentiate between entity types and defines body corporates as a company. The word company also includes an association of persons and a share block company.
Also take note that income tax registration is not voluntary. It is a legal requirement irrespective of whether your body corporate has taxable income or not. Non-compliance is a reportable irregularity; however, the compliance responsibility rests with those appointed to oversee governance of the scheme.
What is a public officer and registered representative?
Let us now clarify the roles of public officer and registered representative.
A public officer is a natural person (individual) residing in South Africa and appointed by the company i.e., a member of the body corporate. In short, a deemed appointment in the absence of an approved or elected or disqualified appointee will be the chairperson or a trustee. The public officer is responsible for all matters, duties and disclosures required of a company under any applicable legislation.
A registered representative is an appointed individual to whom the public officer may delegate tax compliance matters and correspondence, but it does not absolve the appointed public officer of his or her statutory responsibilities i.e., this person may for example be a representative of your managing agent or a tax professional.
What is the biggest change to the income tax return?
The most notable change to the income tax return is the addition of the members register. Key reasons for the introduction of this section include:
Financial Action Task Force (“FATF”) compliance,
the prevention of tax evasion,
data matching and verification.
This step cannot be skipped as the return will not progress to the next automated step if it is recorded that the company (in this case the body corporate) has no members.
The following information will be required for each section owner:
Full names and surnames;
Date of birth;
ID number or (full) passport details;
Cell number and email address, and
Your SA income tax number (if not registered for income tax and “no” is selected, a reason why a tax number is not available is required).
If the section is owned by a company or trust, the applicable company or trust information will need to be made available.
There is no requirement for a copy of the ID or passport to accompany the return, but having this information on hand by the person appointed to prepare the income tax return would be most useful for cross reference purposes and in the event of potential SARS enquiries.
The importance of compliance
Non-compliance and unfiled income tax returns will trigger the commencement of interest and penalty charges.
For further filing instructions refer to Annexure B of this document: How to complete the income tax return (ITR14) for companies.
If you are looking for more information on the above, please reach out to us at info@tvdmconsultants.com or call 061 536 3138.
You can also reach out to Alistair Scholtz on 066 446 3269 or email alistair@communityhub.co.za.
About the Author:
Alistair Scholtz is a Community Scheme Consultant at Community Hub.