The South African International E-commerce Association Saiea has warned that the amount of smuggling of clothes in the country may increase amid clamp down by the South African Revenue Services Sars on taxes.
South Africas tax authority has recently announced its decision to remove a benefit that allowed people to buy clothes and other items from online stores like Shein and Temu without paying extra taxes.
This benefit, called de minimis, allowed items worth less than R500 to be imported without paying duty and Value-Added Tax VAT. Now, these items will be charged 60 tax comprising of 45 import duty and 15 VAT.
Sars tax petitionLocal retailers and the textile industry complained that Chinese e-commerce companies were avoiding taxes, giving them an unfair advantage.
However, the e-commerce industry argues that this change will hurt consumers, especially low-income families, and also affect jobs in the industry.
