Consultant: Interpretative Tax Policy at The South African Revenue Service (SARS)

Job Purpose

• To assist in formulating the official SARS policy and practice with regard to the interpretation and application of the revenue legislation administered by SARS and the drafting of policy documents, such as rulings, opinions and publications, in this regard.

Education and Experience

• LLB, BProc, BCom (Law) or BCom degree AND 5 - 7 years’ experience in a tax technical, legal or consulting environment, of which 2 – 3 years at a technically skilled level

OR

• Senior Certificate (NQF 4) AND 10 years tax technical / legal or consulting experience, of which 2-3 years at a technically skilled level

Job Outputs:

Process

• Accumulate information to review work progress that provides input to reporting, decision making and the identification of improvement opportunities.
• Administer and interpret legislation and provide expert advice to internal and external stakeholders within
• specified timelines.
• Apply practical and applied knowledge and act authoritatively on methods, systems and procedures to identify trends and potential risks.
• Attend to tasks given by management that relates to the research and/or interpretation of legislation.
• Communication of situational interpretation and judgement of work outputs and queries in area of specialisation.
• Contribute to the continuous review of legislation by providing input into changes in law or application thereof that require consideration of opportunities within the product process including risk concern.
• Identify deficiencies, loopholes, etc. in the legislation and propose the way forward to effectively deal with them.
• Initiate process and procedural change, implement the change and provide guidelines and support related to new requirements as a result of the change.
• Plan for value-added process improvements, initiatives and services to deliver on operational strategy and objectives.
• Provide specialist input through the investigation of opportunities for operational and process, product and risk optimisation.
• Provide specialist support and advice to achieve specified objectives against deadlines and quality standards.

Governance

• Implement and provide input into the development of governance, compliance, integrity and ethics processes within area of specialisation.

People

• Develop and maintain productive working relationships with peers and team members to achieve predefined objectives.
• Integrate new knowledge and transfer skills attained through formal and informal learning opportunities in the execution of your job.
• Search for, integrate and share new knowledge attained through formal and informal learning opportunities in the execution of your job.

Finance

• Adhere to organisational policies and procedures to ensure cost effectiveness and reduction of financial costs.

Client

• Contribute to a culture of service excellence, which builds positive relationships and provides opportunity for feedback and exceptional service.
• Ensure client satisfaction by delivering excellent service that is consistent and in line with SARS service delivery standards.
• Provide authoritative, specialist services, expertise and advice to internal and external stakeholders.

Behavioural competencies

• Accountability 
• Analytical Thinking
• Attention to Detail
• Commitment to Continuous Learning
• Conceptual Ability
• Expertise in Context
• Fairness and Transparency
• Honesty and Integrity
• Organisational Awareness
• Problem Solving and Analysis
• Respect
• Trust

Technical competencies

• Business Knowledge
• Data Collection and Analysis
• Effective Business Communication  
• Legal Advisory and Interpretation
• Legal Knowledge and knowledge of ethics
• Legal Writing Skills
• Policy analysis
• Reporting
• Tax Knowledge