19 Short title and commencement
This Act is called the Unemployment Insurance Contributions Act, 2002, and takes effect on a date to be determined by the President by proclamation in the Gazette.
Section 18 (UIF) – Regulations
18 Regulations
The Minister may, by notice in the Gazette and after consultation with the Minister of Labour and the Unemployment Insurance Commissioner, make regulations about any matter which may be prescribed by regulation in terms of this Act or which is necessary to be prescribed for the effective administration of this Act.
Section 16 (UIF) – Collection costs
16 Collection costs
(1) Subject to subsection (2), the Director-General must, on a monthly basis, defray the costs of collection by the Commissioner from the Unemployment Insurance Fund.
(2) The total amount of the costs contemplated in subsection (1), excluding the start-up capital which must be defrayed from the budget of the Department of Labour, shall be equal to one and a half per cent of the total amount of the payments collected, or where the actual expense exceeds one and a half per cent of that amount, such actual costs.
17 . . . . . .
[Section 17 repealed by section 271 read with paragraph 166 of Schedule 1 of Act 28 of 2011]
Section 15 (UIF) – Labour inspectors
15 Labour inspectors
(1) The Commissioner or Unemployment Insurance Commissioner may request a labour inspector to assist in the investigation of any employer required to contribute in terms of section 8 or 9, as the case may be.
(2) An inspector has the same powers afforded to a senior SARS official, a SARS official or SARS under Chapter 5 of the Tax Administration Act.
[Subsection (2) added by section 271 read with paragraph 165 of Schedule 1 of Act 28 of 2011]
Section 9 (UIF) – Payment of contribution to Unemployment Insurance Commissioner and refund
9 Payment of contribution to Unemployment Insurance Commissioner and refund
(1)
(a) For the purpose of this section, “employer” means an employer who-
(i) is not required to register as an employer in terms of paragraph 15 of the Fourth Schedule to the Income Tax Act;
(ii) has not registered voluntarily as an employer in terms of the Fourth Schedule to the Income Tax Act; or
(iii) is not liable for the payment of the skills development levy in terms of the Skills Development Levies Act, 1999 (Act 9 of 1999).
(b) Subject to subsection (5), an employer must, on a monthly basis and in respect of every employee in the employment of that employer, pay to the Unemployment Insurance Commissioner not later than seven days, or such longer period as the Unemployment Insurance Commissioner may determine, after the end of the month in respect of which contributions are payable the amount of—
(i) the employee’s contribution which must be withheld from the remuneration of the employee during that month, as contemplated in section 7(1) or (2); and
(ii) the employer’s contribution as contemplated in section 6(1) (b).
(2) An employer must, together with the payment contemplated in subsection (1), submit a statement in such form as the Unemployment Insurance Commissioner may require and reflecting the amount of the payment and such other particulars as the Minister may prescribe by regulation.
(3) The Unemployment Insurance Commissioner must pay all contributions, interest and penalties collected into the Unemployment Insurance Fund.
(4) If the amount of any contribution, interest or penalty paid by an employer to the Unemployment Insurance Commissioner was not due or payable, or was in excess of the amount due or payable in terms of this Act, that amount or such excess amount must be refunded to that employer by the Unemployment Insurance Commissioner from the Unemployment Insurance Fund—
(a) within five years from the date on which the payment was made in terms of the Act; or
(b) if that amount is claimed by the employer within the period referred to in paragraph (a), but not paid by the Unemployment Insurance Commissioner within that period.
[Subsection (4) substituted by section 25 of Act 33 of 2019]
(5)
(a) Where an employer on reasonable grounds believes that the total amount payable in terms of section 6(1) (a) and (b) in respect of all its employees during any financial year will not exceed such amount as the Unemployment Insurance Commissioner may from time to time determine by notice in the Gazette, the employer may elect to make payment of the full amount of the total contributions in respect of that financial year in a single payment within 7 days after the beginning of that financial year.
(b) If an employer discovers that the amount of the payment contemplated in paragraph (a) is less than the amount payable in respect of all its employees in terms of section 6(1) (a) or (b), that employer must as soon as possible but before the end of the financial year in question pay the outstanding amount to the Unemployment Insurance Commissioner.
“Wage” definition of section 1 of ETI
“wage” means wage as defined in section 1 of the Basic Conditions of Employment Act, 1997 (Act 75 of 1997).
(2) For the purposes of the definition of “monthly remuneration” in subsection (1), “remuneration” has the meaning ascribed to it in paragraph (1) of the Fourth Schedule to the Income Tax Act.
(3) For the purposes of paragraph (c) of the definition of “associated person” in subsection (1) “relative”, in relation to any person, means the spouse of that person or anybody related to him or her or to his or her spouse within the third degree of consanguinity, or any spouse of anybody so related.
“Tax Administration Act” definition of section 1 of ETI
“Tax Administration Act” means the Tax Administration Act, 2011 (Act 28 of 2011);
“Special economic zone” definition of section 1 of ETI
“special economic zone” means a special economic zone as defined in section 12R (1) of the Income Tax Act;
[Definition of “special economic zone” substituted by section 78(1) of Act 34 of 2019 effective on 1 March, 2020]
“Qualifying employee” definition of section 1 of ETI
“qualifying employee” means an employee contemplated in section 6;
“Monthly remuneration” definition of section 1 of ETI
“monthly remuneration”–
(a) where an employer employs and pays remuneration to a qualifying employee for at least 160 hours in a month, means the amount paid or payable to the qualifying employee by the employer in respect of a month; or;
(b) where the employer employs a qualifying employee and pays remuneration to that employee for less than 160 hours in a month, means an amount calculated in terms of section 7(5):
Provided that in determining the remuneration paid or payable, an amount other than a cash payment that is due and payable to the employee after having accounted for deductions in terms of section 34(1)(b) of the Basic Conditions of Employment Act, 1997 (Act 75 of 1997), must be disregarded;
[Definition of “monthly remuneration” substituted by section 112(1) of Act 43 of 2014, amended by section 93(1) of Act 15 of 2016 and substituted by section 2(1)(a)-(d) of Act 13 of 2020 and by section 58(1)(b) of Act 20 of 2021 effective on 1 March, 2022 and applicable in respect of years of assessment commencing on or after that date]