Welcome to the New Year!

We trust that you and your families have had a blessed festive season and wish you all the very best for the year ahead. May 2020 bring you peace, happiness and all the wonderful things that you wish yourselves!

2020 holds exciting opportunities! We have been closed for the festive season and our offices are now back in full swing. We look forward to seeing all our friends, colleagues and clients early in the New Year! If you are in the area please pop in for a cup of coffee and say “hello!”

Minimise your taxable income, maximise your tax savings!

With the end of the tax year (29^th February 2020) fast approaching, you are reminded of the opportunity to minimise your tax liability by investing into a retirement annuity and maximise your tax savings by contributing to a retirement annuity or a tax-free investment.

The financial year-end is just around the corner.  You may wish consider increasing your retirement annuity debit orders or making lump-sum contributions to your existing retirement annuities.

Retirement Annuities – Save for retirement in a tax-efficient way.

Retirement annuities are a great way to save for retirement and for reducing your annual tax payments.  Here are some of the benefits:

• Contributions are tax-deductible up to 27.5% of the higher of your remuneration or taxable income, to a maximum of R350, 000.
• There is no dividend withholding tax, income or capital gains tax applicable on retirement annuities
• Unclaimed or disallowed contributions may be deducted on retirement.
• At retirement, the remaining value (minimum two-thirds) may be transferred to an annuity to provide a regular monthly income in retirement.

Tax-Free investments

Tax-Free Savings Accounts provide South African investors with a new opportunity to save towards a specific goal or supplement their retirement savings. As tax-free investments are not subject to income or capital gains tax, they provide a convenient and flexible way to accumulate savings over time.

Investors may currently contribute a maximum of R33 000 per tax year into a tax-free investment, which equates to a maximum debit order of R2 750 per month. There is also a lifetime contribution limit of R500 000. A word of caution! Any amounts contributed in excess of these limits will be subject to 40% tax payable by the investor.

Please contact us early if you would like to add to your existing retirement annuities or invest in a tax-free investment as there is always a logjam towards the end of February.

“Behold, I am making all things new.” Revelations 21:5

Where did 2019 go?

It seems as though the year simply raced by! Christmas is upon us and a New Year is dawning.

Traditionally investors top up their retirement annuities in February. But as we approach 2020 give some thought to topping up your retirement annuities before the end of the tax year on 29^th February 2020. Retirement annuity contributions are tax-deductible (within certain limits) so beat the taxman this financial year by adding to your retirement annuities!

If one of your goals is to reduce the amount of income tax or capital gains tax on your existing investments, you can invest in a tax-free investment account and benefit from the tax savings. There is no income tax or capital gains tax on tax-free investments. The maximum amount that one can invest in a tax-free savings account is R 33 000 per tax year, with a lifetime maximum of R 500 000.

For help with topping up your retirement annuity or investing in the tax-free investments please contact us.

Continuous Professional Development (CPD)

The Fit and Proper requirements for Financial Services Providers (Board Notice 194 of 2017) introduced legislation to ensure that Key Individuals and Representatives are competent. Moreover, the Board Notice defines “competence” as having the skills, knowledge and expertise needed for the proper discharge of a person’s responsibilities in the performance of his or her functions.

Key Individuals and Representatives are required to:

• maintain knowledge and skills that are appropriate for their activities and responsibilities;
• update their knowledge and skills
• develop new knowledge and skills to assist with their current functions and responsibilities or functions contemplated in the future

We, at Kevin Mills Financial Services cc, embrace this legislation as it affords our Key Individuals and Representatives a platform to develop and hone their investment skills and provide our clients with appropriate advice in the ever-changing environment.

Over the past year the Key Individuals and Representatives have attended Continuous Professional Development Training provided by the following institutions; Allan Gray, Ashburton, BCI, Coronation, Foord, Investec, Marriott, Mill Park Business School, Old Mutual, PSG and Stanlib.

The Continuous Professional Development training provided:

• a continuing update of global and South African markets and expectations for the markets for 2020 and beyond, investor behaviour and its impact on investor returns and 
• Investor behaviour and the impact of such behaviour on the investment returns
• Amendments to legislation and the impact of this legislation on individual investors.   

Christmas Shutdown

Our offices will close for the festive season on Friday 13^th December 2019 and will re-open on Monday 6^th January 2020. We wish all our clients, friends and colleagues a Blessed Christmas and a happy and prosperous New Year!

“But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid; for see—I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, who is the Messiah, the Lord.’” (Luke 2:10-11)