Succession Reviews: Why Your Business Plan Needs a Regular Check-Up
Protecting a family business requires a succession plan that evolves alongside changing tax legislation and family dynamics. However, according to a feature published in March 2026 in Accountancy SA, the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants’ publication, a reported 60% of South African family-owned businesses still have no formal succession plan. Even when succession plans […]
The Consequences of Making Loans to Trusts
Family trusts have long been a central feature of South African estate and wealth planning, with high-net-worth individuals using trust structures to protect assets and to save certain assets, particularly from estate duty. However, many taxpayers who hold substantial assets baulk at the idea of losing complete control over any assets that they may transfer […]
Testamentary trusts still have their place
Trusts have received a lot of bad press over the past few years, what with SARS taking a dim view of the use of trusts as a means of avoiding tax. A 2008 case involving a property trust, where the beneficiaries were changed in the hope of avoiding the payment of transfer duty, is but […]
THE ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF TRUSTS
Trusts have various advantages, but unfortunately, there are also disadvantages. Although this is not a complete synopsis of all the pros and cons, it gives a general overview of what’s involved. Advantages: Growth taking place in the Trust assets settles in the Trust and not in your personal estate. By selling the assets to the […]