CARF does not just send transaction data to SARS. It sends machine-readable, structured data that SARS’s systems can reconcile directly against your tax return. If you bought R1 million of Bitcoin and sold it for R1.5 million, CARF records the buy date, the sell date, the rand amounts and your tax file number. SARS can […]
Category Archives: Regulation & Compliance
CARF went live in South Africa on 1 March 2026. As of that date, every FSCA-licensed Bitcoin exchange must report every client’s transactions to SARS automatically, and SARS exchanges that data with tax authorities in 50+ countries through the OECD’s information-sharing framework. It is the largest structural change in Bitcoin tax transparency since FSCA licensing […]
The 2026 National Budget, delivered on 25 February 2026, included a single sentence that fundamentally changes the regulatory framework for Bitcoin in South Africa. The Finance Minister announced that crypto assets will be brought under the capital flow management framework, effective immediately. This is not a ban. It is not a tax increase. Until this […]
What happens to Bitcoin in a South African divorce has almost no quality public information despite being one of the most-searched Bitcoin questions in local online communities. The answer depends on your matrimonial property regime. For couples married in community of property, Bitcoin acquired during the marriage forms part of the joint estate and is […]
A South African with a R10 million life insurance policy and R5 million in Bitcoin faces a structural estate coordination problem that most insurance agents and estate planners do not address. The life policy is designated to specific beneficiaries. It pays directly to them, outside the estate, bypassing probate and estate duty. The Bitcoin, if […]
FICA, the Financial Intelligence Centre Act, is the legislation that requires South African financial institutions to verify who their clients are, understand where their money comes from, and report suspicious activity to the Financial Intelligence Centre. For Bitcoin investors, FICA appears as the onboarding process: you provide your ID, address, tax number and sometimes source […]
The Trust Property Control Act places personal liability on trustees for the prudent management and safekeeping of all trust assets. A trustee who invests trust funds recklessly, fails to keep proper records or allows trust assets to be misappropriated faces personal liability. If a trust deed grants the trustee broad investment powers but is silent […]
The 2026 National Budget doubled South Africa’s Single Discretionary Allowance from R1 million to R2 million, effective immediately. This is the first increase in the SDA since 2011 and represents a material expansion of the offshore investment right for South African residents. The timing coincides with the announcement that Bitcoin will be brought under the […]
In 2024, Standard Bank refused to allow its retail customers to trade Bitcoin, claiming legal uncertainty about whether Bitcoin constitutes “capital” under South Africa’s Exchange Control Regulations. The bank was sued by customers demanding the right to trade. The High Court ruled that Bitcoin does not meet the legal definition of “capital” as defined in […]
SARS does not see your Bitcoin holding in real time. What it sees is a structured annual report of your transaction history on licensed exchanges, submitted under the Common Reporting Standard for crypto assets (CARF). That report covers what you bought, what you sold, the dates and the rand amounts. It does not show what […]