Globally, tax risk management is now a boardroom issue and fast becoming a discipline in itself. This is the result of the unprecedented level of scrutiny of tax by regulators, tax authorities, investors/analysts, the media, other stakeholders, and internally from the board.

A primary criticism by taxpayers and tax practitioners alike, is that our tax regime is far too complex and the cost of compliance, too onerous. Commissioner for the South African Revenue Service Pravin Gordhan has been known to imply that it is only a select minority (primarily, sophisticated taxpayers who are able to afford the services of a clever tax …