It is the system of checks and balances to ensure the company’s financial records are accurate and reliable being the result of transactions that are carried out and recorded timeously, accurately and efficiently.
The effectiveness of internal controls is dependent on management’s attitude towards controls.
Indications of a strong internal control environment
Employees possess the necessary skills and competence required
Recruitment agencies or HR checks and verify the details in CVs properly.
Proper inhouse training to staff
Clear roles and responsibilities
Separation of duties are in place between functions of initiation, authorization, recording and reviewing.
Monitoring of staff performance
Strong document controls include:
Easy to understand designed forms
Sequentially pre-numbered documents to be able to track, record and reconcile documents.
Orders and Invoices approved by management
Payments approved by management
Physical verification and inspections are performed
Supporting documents accompany orders and deliveries
Information on documents comply with VAT requirements
Documents are filed regularly and in a logical manner
Strong Accounting and Admin controls include:
Reconciliations between accounting records and source documents – bank accounts, supplier statements, customer statements.
SARS’s system makes it easier for taxpayers to obtain a Tax Clearance Certificate (TCC) and the system allows taxpayers to obtain a Tax Compliance Status PIN which can be used by third parties to verify your compliance status online via SARS eFiling.
It enables the business owner to focus on his core activities while all administrative burdens are dealt with by qualified professionals.
Tax Practitioners have a dedicated Call Center for specific taxpayer related queries.
Tax Practitioners have dedicated offices for taxpayer related queries and can book appointments with SARS.
They provide advice about the application of a tax Act.
Complete or assists with the completion of a tax returns.
A tax practitioner belongs to a regulatory body.
Has to comply with SARS requirements for qualifications and experience.
Participate in continuous professional development programmes to ensure their knowledge stays ups to date.
The Tax Administration Act (2011) has been amended requiring tax practitioners to register with a recognized controlling body, and with SARS.
The list of currently recognized controlling bodies:
• Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) • Chartered Secretaries Southern Africa (CSSA) • Financial Planning Institute (FPI) • Institute of Accounting and Commerce (IAC) • SA Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA) • SA Institute of Professional Accountants (SAIPA) • SA Institute of Tax Practitioners (SAIT) • The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) • Association of Accounting Technicians Southern Africa(AAT(SA)) • Law Society of South Africa • General Council of the Bar of South Africa, Bar Councils and Societies of Advocates referred to in Section 7 of the Admission of Advocates Act, 1964 • Independent Regulatory Board for Auditors (IRBA)
What are the requirements in order to register as a tax practitioner?
A tax practitioner, must meet the following requirements:
Belong to or fall under the jurisdiction of a Recognised Controlling Body as referred to in 240A of the Tax Administration Act.
Have the minimum qualifications and experience set by your Recognised Controlling Body.
Have no criminal convictions for the offences described in s 240(3) of the Tax Administration Act.
Participate in continuous professional development programmes set by your Recognised Controlling Body.
Wessels & Associates is a SARS Registered Tax Practitioner.We can submit the following statutory returns via e-filing or other portals on your behalf:
EMP Payroll returns – PAYE, UIF, SDL, IRP5s
VAT returns VAT201
TAX returns – IT12 or IT14 – Individual taxation and Corporate Taxation
Any person that carries on a business may register for VAT.
It is mandatory for a person to register for VAT if the taxable supplies made or to be made is, in excess of R1 million in any consecutive twelve-month period.
A person may also choose to register voluntarily if the taxable supplies made, in the past period of twelve months, exceeded R50 000.
VAT increased from 14% to 15% from 1 April 2018.
How to register for VAT?
The VAT 101 application for registration must be submitted in person at the SARS branch nearest to the place where your business is situated or carried on.
A registered tax practitioner can register your business for VAT on your behalf.
Registering For Employees’ Tax [Pay-As-You-Earn (PAYE)]
Who should register as an Employer?
An employer must register with the SARS within 21 business days after becoming an employer, unless none of the employees are liable for normal tax.
What is Employees Tax?
Employees’ Tax refers to the tax required to be deducted by an employer from an employee’s remuneration paid or payable. The process of deducting from remuneration as it is earned by an employee is commonly referred to as PAYE.
Monthly submissions to SARS by Employer
The amounts deducted or withheld must be paid by the employer to SARS on a monthly basis, by completing the Monthly Employer Declaration (EMP201). The EMP201 is a payment declaration in which the employer declares the total payment.
Employer Annual Reconciliations
Employers are required to submit their Employer Annual Reconciliations by 31 May to SARS, confirming or correcting payroll tax amounts which were declared in respect of the tax period.
Who should register for Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF)
An employer who is registered or required to register with SARS for PAYE and/or Skills Development Levy (SDL) purposes, is also required to register with SARS for the payment of Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) contributions to SARS.
Accounting and bookkeeping entails processing of bank statement transactions into an accounting system. Processing is done regularly to ensure accounting records are always up to date to produce accurate financial reports. We follow accounting standards prescribed for South Africa– IFRS for Small and Medium size entities (IFRS for SMEs).
Management Reporting
Wessels & AssociatesAccountants can provide you with accounting reports to enable you to analyse your business performance on a regular basis. Reporting can be done based on your business needs. In a project environment for instance, the accounting system can be set up to report on the profit per project.
Income statement
An Income Statement is a report that shows your Income from Sales, less your expenses, to show if your business is making a profit.
Month to month comparisons can be made to budgets and to other months to determine why your income and expenses are increasing.
Budgets
We can assist you with compiling a budget and comparing it with the actual accounting records. This will help you identify over expenditure and corrective action can be taken.
Balance Sheet
A Balance Sheet is a summary of your Assets and Liabilities at any point in time. Financial Institutions are interested in this report to determine your liquidity, solvency and overall financial position.
Fixed Asset Registers
Wessels & Associates can assist you with setting up and maintaining an Asset Register.
An Fixed Asset Register keeps record of all your companies’ assets, where they are located, when they were purchased, at what cost and their current book values.
As qualified chartered accountants we can calculate depreciation, impairments and book values.
Annual Financial Statements
Financial Statements should be supplied to SARS and CIPC on an annual basis. Banks also require Financial Statements that are compiled by a qualified accountant. As Registered Auditors,this will give the Annual Financial Statements the credibility required by the institutions.
Accounting Systems and Software
SagePastel Accounting Software and Xero Accounting Software are mainly used in our practice.
We can also assist with converting your current system whether manual or on excel over to Pastel or Xero Accounting.
We can submit the following statutory returns via e-filing or other portals on your behalf:
EMP Payroll returns– PAYE, UIF, SDL, IRP5s
VAT returns VAT201
TAX returns – IT12 or IT14 – Individual taxation and Corporate Taxation
Provisional Tax returns IRP6
Unemployment Insurance Funds UIF returns
Compensation Commission returns
Tax Clearance Certificates
Tax Compliance Status requests
Auditing or Other Types of Engagements
We are Registered Auditors with the IRBA (International Regulatory Board of Auditors) and there for allowed to conduct statutory audits and other audit engagements.
As there are different types of engagements your business needs to first determine what kind of engagement it requires. Certain small and medium size companies, for example, might only need a Compilation Engagement or an Independent Review rather than a full statutory audit.
The type of engagement required by each business is prescribed by the Companies Act of 2008 and depends on the result of the Public Interest Score (PIS) calculated.
We can calculate your PIS to determine what kind of engagement you need.
Other audit support or Internal Auditing
Even if we are not appointed as your auditors, we can also assist you with getting audit ready and liaise with your own appointed auditors to support you during an audit.
Audit readiness entails for instance preparing prior to the audit, reconciliations such as Bank reconciliations, VAT reconciliations to Turnover, Payroll reconciliations. Preparing a fixed asset register and depreciation calculations and year end journals.
Your company’s control environment and system description can also be documented and streamlined not only for audit purposes but also for your own internal control benefits.
The communication gap between your accounting staff and the external audit team can create unnecessary delays and misunderstandings.
Having a qualified accountant and CA(SA)on youraccounting team will assist both parties (you and the auditor) through a painless and efficient audit process.
Internal controls
We can design and help with implementing controls and systems in your accounting department.
Appropriate internal controls can prevent and detect errors and fraud.
Controls such as reconciliations, approval documentation, and segregation of duties, checks and balances will support complete and accurate accounting records that can be relied on.
A strong control environment gives you that peace of mind.
Training and capacity building
Training in bookkeeping, accounting and general office administration are available should you need to up-skill your employees. This will in the long term build capacity for your business and provide your employees with growth and personal development.
Our Fees
We provide initial free consultation to determine your business accounting and financial reporting needs.
Our fees are based on a combination of the required hours and level of skills needed which is driven by the size of your business and an estimated number of transactions.
We will be happy to provide you with a detailed quotation of our package for your business.
