Durban - Renowned cleric Bishop Vusi Dube of eThekwini Community Church says churches have played an important role in community-building in South Africa without much support from the government, and it would therefore be a shame if they were to be taxed.
Dube was responding to recent remarks from the SA Local Government Association (Salga) in KwaZulu-Natal for a review of the current arrangement in which churches are exempt from paying rates.
Dube said churches were getting by without any government support despite playing an important role in the country’s social cohesion project.
In November, the KwaZulu-Natal branch of Salga called for a national discussion and review of the tax exemptions allowable to churches.
Salga said that, with many churches spread across the country, local authorities were losing potential revenue and land that would be viable for business opportunities.
Dube said any move towards taxing churches would not be a sound one when one considered that churches were treated differently when compared with other countries.
“I have been to countries such as Germany and Switzerland where churches and their leaders are offered assistance by their respective governments. This issue of our government looking at taxing churches is a shameful consideration,” said Dube.
He added that many churches had been severely affected by the Covid-19 lockdown back in 2020 and were still recovering from this.
“When bearing in mind the role that churches play in our society, the government should be forthcoming with an array of assistance to enable these crucial institutions to survive,” he said.
The KwaZulu-Natal Christian Council’s Bishop Nathi Zondi said he had not come across such a view, adding that they would respond to the notion once a formal presentation had been made to them. He said they had not received any correspondence on the issue from the SA Council of Churches (SACC), of which they are an affiliate.
“Ordinarily, such information is communicated nationally, and then we would hear from the secretary-general’s office in the SACC.
“Given that we have not so far, our conclusion is that it was possibly a statement of intent that will be formalised, and then engagements will take place. Considering that we are at the beginning of the year, this is probably still coming,” said Zondi.
Thokozani Mncwabe, the spokesperson for Nazareth Baptist Church eBuhleni, one of the largest churches in South Africa, said they had not received any formal invitation from Salga to discuss the matter.
“If and when a formal invite is issued, then a team will be set up to engage Salga on the matter, and then a position will be taken on the matter,” he said.
According to Salga, the Income Tax Act of 1962 exempts churches and schools from paying income tax, and they also receive other favourable treatment under the tax laws, as they hold the status of public benefit organisations. The advocacy body insisted that the SA Revenue Service, as the custodian of this act, had an obligation to look at the prevailing situation in the country and start a national debate on this matter, as in 2022 some private schools were even listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange and generate profits for their shareholders.
“Similarly, many churches hold significant resources.
“This all begs the question as to whether the donations of land and exemptions from taxes remain appropriate in today’s day and age,” said Salga.
KZN Salga chairperson Thami Ntuli was not available to confirm whether this remained their standpoint, and national spokesperson Sivuyile Mbabato was also not available for comment.