'Not even a cent': Lucky Montana denies owing SARS R55 million
The standoff between the South African Revenue Service (SARS) and former PRASA CEO Lucky Montana shows no signs of cooling down
Image: IOL Graphics
The standoff between the South African Revenue Service (SARS) and former PRASA CEO Lucky Montana shows no signs of cooling down, after he denied owing the revenue service any money, saying, “I do not owe SARS even a cent.”
IOL previously reported that the revenue service made good on its promise to disclose Montana’s tax affairs, revealing details of his outstanding tax debt of over R55 million, as well as a R5.4 million settlement offer he submitted last month.
This came after SARS warned the former PRASA boss to retract his allegations of fraud within 24 hours or face public disclosure of his confidential tax information.
"Recently, on August 8, 2025, Mr Montana submitted a compromise offer to SARS, offering the sum of approximately R5.4 million to satisfy the total tax debt outstanding, which currently stands at R55,133,282.94," the revenue service revealed.
"A prerequisite in terms of the Tax Administration Act for SARS to consider a compromise offer is that the tax debt may not be disputed. In other words, the taxpayer must accept that the tax is due and payable."
The revenue service also outlined the timeline of non-compliance, which included Montana’s alleged failure to submit tax returns for multiple years and to provide relevant material during the audit process.
Despite being afforded several extensions, SARS said Montana’s responses were “limited” and failed to address the audit findings.
However, in a post on X (formerly Twitter), Montana hit back, saying he does not owe SARS even a cent and will address all the issues raised by the revenue service in a press briefing on Monday.