This is the third in the series to help you fill in your income tax form, written for Personal Finance by Christo Henning, media liaison officer of SA Revenue Services.
3.1 MEDICAL AND DENTAL EXPENSES
Claim the following amounts you actually paid for yourself, your spouse and your qualifying children or stepchildren:
* Contributions to a medical scheme approved under the Medical Schemes Act. This contribution will in most cases be reflected on your IRP5 certificate.
* Expenses you paid which are not recoverable from the medical fund for services rendered and medicines supplied by a registered medical practitioner, dentist, optometrist, homeopath, naturopath, osteopath, herbalist, physiotherapist, chiropractor or orthoptist; hospitalisation in a registered hospital or nursing clinic; home nursing by a registered nurse; or prescribed medicines acquired from a registered pharmacist.
* Medical expenses incurred and paid outside the Republic.
* Expenditure necessarily incurred and paid in consequence of a physical disability suffered by you, your spouse or qualifying children (ie a blind person claiming expenses regarding his guide dog). The nature of the disability, as well as details of how the amount was calculated, must be stated.
"Handicapped person" means a blind person, deaf person, a person who as a result of a permanent disability requires a wheelchair, calliper or crutch to assist him to move from one place to another or a person who requires an artificial limb. It also includes a person who suffers from mental illness. A mental illness is a disorder or ability of the mind and includes any mental disease and any arrested or incomplete development of the mind.
Please claim all your qualifying expenses.
Where extensive expenses were incurred and proof of payment becomes too bulky to attach to the return, attach a summary to your return which includes the date, description, beneficiary, receipt number and your contribution. For example:
27/5/96Prescribed medication ABC Pharmacy R-123456R26.50
Note: All receipts must be available for perusal by the Receiver of Revenue.
Keep your receipts to prove your claim.
Certain medical schemes issue a certificate to prove private contributions. Attach this certificate as proof of expenses.
Claim your actual contributions, as the calculations will be done by the Receiver of Revenue.
3.2 TOOL ALLOWANCE
The maximum allowance for tools is R75 and it is allowed to artisans/technicians who provide their own tools for use in their trade.
3.3 DONATIONS
Only donations to universities, collages, technikons, the Bible Society of South Africa (donations to the Bible Society prior to or on September 30 1996 only) and approved educational funds may be claimed.
NOTE: Receipts must be attached.
Claim your actual contributions, as the calculations will be done by the Receiver of Revenue.
3.4 CURRENT CONTRIBUTIONS
This is your monthly or weekly contribution to the company's pension fund. For tax purposes your maximum allowable contribution is 7,5 percent of your annual remuneration.
Claim your actual contributions, as the calculations will be done by the Receiver of Revenue.
3.5 ARREAR CONTRIBUTIONS TO AN APPROVED PENSION FUND
Claim your actual contributions - the maximum claim is R1 800.
Any excess will be carried forward to the following year of assessment.
3.6 CURRENT CONTRIBUTIONS TO APPROVED RETIREMENT ANNUITY FUNDS
Claim your actual contributions, as the calculations will be done by the Receiver of Revenue.
Any excess will be carried forward to the succeeding year of assessment.
3.7 ARREAR CONTRIBUTIONS TO APPROVED RETIREMENT ANNUITY FUNDS
Claim your actual contributions - to a maximum of R1 800.
Any excess will be carried forward to the succeeding year of assessment.
Points 3.8, 3.9 and 3.10 will be dealt with next week, as they are important and warrant detailed explanation.