On 01 December 2023, the South African Revenue Service (SARS) advised that since 03 December 2021, it has been mandatory for all importers to apply for an Advance Payment Notification (APN) number from SARS for each advance import payment with a value of R50,000 and above, and where the balance of payment (BOP) category code is 101.
With effect from 01 December 2023, authorised dealers (banks) are obligated to record, validate and report the APN provided by a trader/importer to the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) when such payment is concluded. This means that authorised dealers will only make Advance Import Payments on confirmation of a valid SARS APN. For more information, see the updated FAQs published on the APN webpage.
Details are available at:
- www.sars.gov.za/wp-content/uploads/Docs/APN-FAQ-28-November-2023.pdf
- www.sars.gov.za/customs-and-excise/advance-import-payments/