Boatwright Consulting

17/07/2026

For many business owners, receiving a notification from the South African Revenue Service (SARS) about an audit can be intimidating. Words like “audit” often create unnecessary anxiety, leading people to assume that something has gone seriously wrong.

The reality is that a SARS audit is simply a review of your tax affairs to verify that the information submitted is accurate and supported by appropriate documentation. In many cases, audits are routine, and businesses that maintain good financial records often move through the process with minimal disruption.

The key is preparation.

Being audit-ready isn’t about scrambling to find paperwork when SARS contacts you—it’s about building good financial habits throughout the year. With organised records and the support of an experienced accountant, your business can approach an audit with confidence rather than concern.

Prepare your business for a SARS audit with confidence. Learn what triggers an audit and how Boatwright can make the process stress-free.

13/07/2026

Receiving a penalty notice from the South African Revenue Service (SARS) can be unsettling. Whether you're a business owner, sole proprietor or individual taxpayer, seeing additional charges on your tax account often raises immediate concerns about what went wrong and how serious the situation might become.
Fortunately, a SARS penalty is not always the end of the road. In many cases, penalties can be reduced, withdrawn or successfully challenged if the matter is addressed promptly and correctly.
Understanding why penalties are issued, how they work, and what steps to take can help you minimise financial consequences while restoring your tax compliance.

Receiving a penalty notice from the South African Revenue Service (SARS) can be unsettling. Whether you're a business owner, sole proprietor or individual taxpayer, seeing additional charges on your tax account often raises immediate concerns about what went wrong and how serious the situation might...

29/05/2026

Even though personal tax season is later in the year, the best time to prepare is before you’re under pressure.

If you’re an individual taxpayer (or a business owner), now is the time to gather and organise the basics: medical aid certificates, retirement annuity contributions, travel logs (if relevant), and any supporting documents for deductions.

Let’s put a simple system in place so your return is accurate, supported, and stress-free when filing opens.

✉️ [email protected] 📞 043 102 0233 📍10 Berea Terrace, East London

27/05/2026

Late, messy books don’t just make reporting harder — they increase compliance risk.

The cleaner your records are (bank recs, invoices, payroll support, VAT support), the easier it is to respond to SARS queries quickly and confidently.

Let’s catch you up properly and keep you compliant without the stress.

✉️ [email protected] 📞 043 102 0233 📍10 Berea Terrace, East London

25/05/2026

Smart businesses don’t wait for provisional tax season to arrive before they look at the numbers.

May is a great time for a short “where are we really sitting?” check-in — especially if cash flow has been unpredictable, margins are tighter, or drawings have increased.

Let’s do an early review now so August provisional tax doesn’t become a financial shock later.

✉️ [email protected] 📞 043 102 0233 📍10 Berea Terrace, East London

21/05/2026

EMP501 is not just PAYE. It’s the full reconciliation of payroll taxes where applicable (PAYE, SDL, UIF and ETI) across the year.

This is where businesses get caught out by things like:
☑️ ETI claimed incorrectly
☑️ UIF/SDL not balancing
☑️ payments not matching declarations
☑️ late-month adjustments not reflected properly

Let’s reconcile it properly so your submission is clean, consistent, and defensible.

✉️ [email protected] 📞 043 102 0233 📍10 Berea Terrace, East London

20/05/2026

EMP501 season isn’t just a “business admin” issue - it affects your people. If an IRP5/IT3(a) is wrong, employees can end up stuck with delayed assessments, incorrect pre-populated returns or SARS queries they don’t understand.

Accuracy matters: correct income codes, correct deductions, correct PAYE withheld and it must match what was declared during the year.

Let’s review your certificates before submission so you don’t create avoidable drama for your staff (or yourself).

✉️ [email protected] 📞 043 102 0233 📍10 Berea Terrace, East London

17/05/2026

If you want your EMP501 to go quickly, preparation is everything. Before you submit, make sure you can account for:

☑️ monthly EMP201 declarations vs payments made
☑️ any payroll adjustments (bonuses, terminations, back-pay)
☑️ ETI calculations (if you claimed)
☑️ employee details (IDs, addresses, tax numbers)
☑️ matching totals across the full year (1 March to end-Feb)

Let’s run a clean checklist review and submit with confidence.

✉️ [email protected] 📞 043 102 0233 📍10 Berea Terrace, East London

16/05/2026

Most payroll problems start with the monthly basics. EMP201 submissions and payments are due within 7 days after month-end (typically by the 7th).

When those monthly numbers aren’t done properly, EMP501 becomes a scramble — and SARS penalties become more likely.

Let’s get your monthly payroll process running smoothly so reconciliation season stays simple.

✉️ [email protected] 📞 043 102 0233 📍10 Berea Terrace, East London

15/05/2026

May is the month where payroll gets tested. The Employer Annual Reconciliation (EMP501) is where SARS checks whether what you declared monthly matches what you paid over and whether your employee tax certificates are accurate.

If anything is off, it can delay employee assessments, trigger queries and create a mess you didn’t budget time for.

Let’s get your EMP501 submitted correctly and on time - with clean figures and no last-minute panic.

✉️ [email protected] 📞 043 102 0233 📍10 Berea Terrace, East London