Frequently Asked Questions
Answers to the most common questions we receive
Finding the right answers
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Do I lose my South African citizenship?
No — tax emigration affects only your tax residency, not your citizenship.
How much can I transfer offshore?
- Approved International Transfer (AIT):up to R10 million per adult per calendar year (requires SARS AIT Pin letter)
- To transfer more than R10 million from South Africa, you must first obtain a SARS AIT PIN and then apply for special approval from the South African Reserve Bank (SARB). This process is required because the amount exceeds the standard allowances for international transfers.
- The Approval for International Transfer (AIT) PIN is a tax clearance from the South African Revenue Service (SARS) that confirms your tax affairs are in order and the source of your funds is legitimate.
- Single Discretionary Allowance (SDA): up to R1 million per adult per year (no SARS AIT pin required).
Why do I need a South African bank account?
All retirement annuity proceeds and capital transfers must first be paid into an SA account before being remitted offshore. RandTangle can assist if your account has been closed.
What if my spouse isn’t registered with SARS?
They will need a tax number for clearance purposes — we can facilitate this.
What are your fees?
Our service fees are fixed and based on the complexity of your situation. We’re fully transparent in how we charge. We don’t apply a separate commission — instead, our fee is simply a small percentage of the final forex amount that is transferred or an upfront fee agreed with one of our partners. If no foreign exchange applies we will charge you a pre-approved admin fee.
Can I transfer my living annuity out of South Africa as a SARS tax non resident
Yes. If you have been a tax resident offshore for three consecutive tax years.
How do I get my money out of South Africa?
There are various ways you can access your money in South Africa. This includes using normal allowances, such as your annual Discretionary Allowance, or formally emigrating from South Africa. We can help with all of these.
What is the difference between immigration and formal emigration?
Immigration is the process of relocating to another country. Formal emigration is the financial exit for exchange control purposes.
Physical relocation does not automatically result in financial exit – if you haven’t formally emigrated you are viewed as a South African temporally abroad, and subject to same tax and exchange control regulations as others living in South Africa
Do I lose my Citizenship when I formally emigrate?
No – you do not have to give up your South African citizenship. Emigrating from South Africa simply formalises your financial exit from South Africa for exchange control purposes. Your financial status will change from ‘resident’ to ‘non-resident’ on completion, but you remain South African.
What allowances will I qualify for when I formally emigrate?
You will have a capital allowance of R10 million per adult or R20 million per family and a travel allowance of up to R1 million per adult and R200,000 per child under the age of 18.
Furthermore, you will have an export allowance entitling you to export household and personal effects, including cars up to a total insured value of R2 million.
It is possible to request the transfer of your remaining liquid assets that exceed the foreign capital allowance limits. We also manage the application for assets exceeding the allowances.
There are various ways you can access your money in South Africa. This includes using normal allowances, such as your annual Discretionary Allowance, or formally emigrating from South Africa. We can help with all of these.
What is a blocked account?
All transfers will flow offshore from this account once your emigration is complete.
The account is not frozen or locked – it is simply an account with the single purpose to transfer money from South Africa.
Why do I need a new South African bank account?
To regulate the foreign exchange market, only a South African bank can certify the emigration application, and life assurers may only transfer retirement annuity proceeds into an emigrant’s capital account, from where it can be transferred to your new country.
I have formally emigrated in the past, but no longer have he South African Account. How do I proceed?
Usually, only the bank that handled your emigration can re-open a new account for you. This does complicate the process but does not make it impossible – please contact us to see if we can help.
What if my spouse has never worked and is not registered with SARS?
Unfortunately, we would need to register her with SARS for tax clearances purposes.
How are RandTangle’s fees calculated?
RandTangle charges a service fee based on the specific circumstances and need surrounding the emigration of each client, and the services required, We do not have a commission based service fee that changes based on policy size. Contact us for a no obligation quotation.
Can I transfer the capital of policies and pensions that are already paying regular income?
It is generally not possible to transfer policies and pensions that are already paying regular income.
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