General ruling – dividends tax covered under article 2 of South African tax treaties

The South African Revenue Service (SARS) issued a binding general ruling on 19 February 2013 dealing with the question as to whether the "dividends tax" introduced on 1 April 2012  is covered under South Africa's tax treaties that were signed before that date. Details of the ruling are summarized below.

(a) Background. Prior to 1 April 2012, South Africa had a so-called secondary tax on companies (STC). An STC was imposed at the second stage on a resident company on the amount by …