On 1 December 2022, the South African National Treasury publishes a media statement on Multilateral Convention to Implement Tax Treaty Related Measures to Prevent Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (“Multilateral Instrument” or “BEPS MLI”). The Base Erosion Profit Shifting (BEPS) MLI has been published in Government Gazette 47559 of 25 November 2022. The BEPS MLI was approved and ratified by Parliament in terms of section 231(2) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996 (Act 108 of 1996), subject to notifications and reservations.
The BEPS MLI will be applied alongside existing tax treaties. South Africa currently has 79 bilateral tax treaties in force. The BEPS MLI will come into force for the Republic of South Africa on 1 January 2023.