SARS aims to record all beneficial owners of registered Trusts to comply with the Financial Action Task Force requirements. Information in this regard must be submitted via e-Filing. These documents may include:
- An organogram or illustration depicting effective control of the Trust. Where the Beneficial Ownership is in the form of other legal arrangements or legal entities, this should be provided in a separate attachment.
- An Excel spreadsheet containing the above information; or
- Other documents that elaborate on Beneficial Ownership in relation to the Trust.
When capturing the beneficial ownership-information, it is mandatory for the current year’s return to submit at least one document that relates to beneficial-ownership information. If there are more than 20 beneficial owners, the taxpayer must upload a supporting document that reflects the additional beneficial owners.
Submit all minutes, excluding those dealing with internal trustee governance arrangements or administrative matters. A guide on Trusts is available here: IT-AE-36-G02 – Comprehensive Guide to the Income Tax return for Trusts – External Guide
Source: SARS
