SA Revenue Service is set to enhance its Preferred Trader programme (PT) with a view to migrating to an Authorised Economic Operator (AEO) programme, acting Sars commissioner Mark Kingon told delegates at the SA Association of Freight Forwarders (Saaff) conference recently.
This will enable South African AEOs to benefit in future from mutual recognition arrangements with key trading partners.
“Since the PT programme was officially launched in 2017, 63 clients have now been granted accredited PT status.” Kingon said the revenue service was moving to a risk-based, supply-chainwide enforcement approach which would tie in with its illicit economy strategy and it had identified economic sectors that required urgent attention.
“We intend to get better at understanding the players and trends in particular sectors with a view to making it easy for those who are compliant, while disrupting – and in some cases shutting down – criminal syndicates. We will also be adopting both a Sars and government-wide approach to increase our chances of flushing out criminal elements from the economic system,” he said.
Sars also recently launched a National Operations Forum with representation from both Sars and the private sector. This, said Kingon, was proving to be very effective in highlighting inefficiencies within the customs environment.
“Work with us to isolate blatant non-compliance and be our eyes and ears in the supply chain. The more we all take responsibility for ensuring a secure and compliant supply chain, the more seamless the movement of legitimate trade will be,” he said. In terms of rooting out corruption, there was an urgent call for industry not to turn a blind eye – whether it involved Sars officers or individuals from private companies.
“As a South African you will be aware that corruption is a cancer that is causing untold damage to the future of our country. We should display a zero tolerance attitude to this criminal behaviour so that those perpetuating such acts will have no place to hide.
Sars has identified economic sectors that require urgent attention. – Mark Kingon
