Sars clamps down on ghost exports

SA Revenue Service has

stepped up efforts to clamp

down on ‘ghost’ exports

which are becoming

increasingly prevalent in the

Customs environment.

This follows an incident

last week in which the Sars

Tactical Intervention Unit

(TIU) and the South African

Police Service (SAPS)

arrested a Benoni-based

clearing agent for offering a

bribe of R100 000 to a TIU

officer.

The TIU was investigating

a suspected ghost export

case against the agent

after Customs officials

stopped a truck loaded

with an electrical

transformer (valued at

over R9 million) at the

Kopfontein border post,

finding various entry

discrepancies.

Ghost exports are one of a

number of schemes identified

by Sars where exporters

and/or clearing agents

manipulate the value-added

tax (VAT) system. “This

could, for example, involve

faking export papers for nonexistent

goods that carry

a zero-rating on indirect

exports and submitting

fraudulent invoices for

income tax purposes,”

explained the spokesperson.