The SARS VDP relief is set out in Section 229 of the Tax Administration Act 28 of 2011.
Despite the provisions of a tax Act, SARS must, pursuant to the making of a valid voluntary disclosure by the applicant and the conclusions of the voluntary disclosure agreement-
(a) not pursue criminal prosecution for a statutory offence under a tax Act arising from the ‘default’ or a related common law offence;
(b) grant the relief in respect of any understatement penalty to the extent referred to in column 5 or 6 of the understatement penalty percentage table:
| 1 Item | 2 Behavior | 3 Standard Case | 4 Obstructive or repeat case | 5 Voluntary disclosure after notification of audit | 6 Voluntary disclosure before notification of audit |
| (i) | Substantial understatement | 25% | 50% | 5% | 0% |
| (ii) | Reasonable care not taken in completing return | 50% | 75% | 25% | 0% |
| (iii) | No reasonable grounds for ‘tax position’ taken | 75% | 100% | 35% | 0% |
| (iv) | Gross negligence | 100% | 125% | 50% | 5% |
| (v) | Intentional tax evasion | 150% | 200% | 75% | 10% |
(c) grant 100% relief in respect of an administrative non-compliance penalty, excluding a penalty imposed for the late submission of a return or a late payment of tax.
