Tax Axe Falls On Shein And Temu As Sars Ends Customs Free Ride

South Africas tax authority is pulling the plug on all backdoor deals and sweeteners that traders have quietly enjoyed for years.

In a bold move, the South African Revenue Service SARS is set to revoke every unofficial workaround, concession, and handshake deal that allowed businesses to sidestep certain customs and excise requirements, as first reported by Business Tech .

These concessions, some dating back two decades, are now seen as outdated relics, according to SARS commissioner Edward Kieswetter. He argues that what may have served a purpose in the past no longer aligns with modern policies or the country's technological advancements.

Global online giants like Shein and Temu could be among the hardest hit . For years, they've benefited from a simplified customs process-originally introduced in 2007-that allowed them to bring in shipments under R500 with a low, flat 20 duty rate. This method, created during the early boom of e-commerce, was meant to help logistics firms keep up with the flood of imported packages.

But South African retailers have cried foul, saying the system gave foreign sellers an unfair edge. Not only did it lower costs for the giants, but it also opened the door for manipulation-like splitting parcels to stay under the R500 threshold.