iAfrica 16 seconds ago 3 min read Share with your network! In line with its pledge earlier this year to increase its focus on wealthy individuals and offshore holdings, the South African Revenue Service (SARS) has started contacting South African taxpayers with financial accounts abroad to request information. The aim is to see how much has been disclosed in prior tax returns and to assess any underpayments. SARS’ newfound reach is thanks to the Common Reporting Standard (CRS), which sees 87 countries around the world sharing the account information of the world’s taxpayers. The CRS was born out of the American initiative, the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), essentially widening the scope internationally. CRS aims to collect information on the member states citizens’ offshore assets, and has been adopted by many countries as a method to supplement their fiscus.