PROpulsion LIVE

Send us Fan Mail

Hugo van Zyl returns to PROpulsion for an essential update on tax for expats now that the changes are in effect since the 1st of March 2020. Hugo was a guest on episode 16 (our most popular and downloaded episode to date).

In today's episode, we discuss:

• What it means to be resident;
• Announcements in the latest budget speech (26 Feb 2020) that impact South Africans working abroad or considering emigration;
• Our opinions of how financial or formal emigration will be phased out by 1 March 2021 as announced and the processes that may apply thereafter;
• Several problems and challenges have been identified after people tax or financially emigrated - we discuss some interesting examples from real clients;
• The new IRP3(q) tax directive to reduce the PAYE deductible from an employee's remuneration who works offshore by South African employers;
• Whether an employee can apply for this directive themselves;
• The requirements and process to apply for the directive.

Hugo runs his own private tax practice as well as joint venture tax and formal emigration business, assisting expats, or “WEG”kaners (away Africans as fondly refers to his client base) to legally reconcile themselves as foreign resident expats with his ZA Rand wallet and retirement funds.

Send us Fan Mail

Barrie van Zyl is the Head of Account Management at Iress in South Africa.

We discuss several aspects related to the adoption or implementation of technology in financial planning businesses, although these aspects will apply to any kind of business looking to adopt technology.

We start off talking about the rate of advancement and adoption. 

Businesses struggle to choose the right technology and software and the process is very overwhelming. We discuss why this is the case and where business may be going wrong.

 I ask Barrie the question if financial planning businesses are really embracing technology?

How does one go about selecting technology and/or software for your practice or business? Where is the best place to start? What must be considered?

Businesses often struggle to reap the benefits of the technology they implement. Corporates go through a rigorous selection process and often a few years later they find themselves back at the same point going through the same process again selecting new solutions.  Why is this?

We get into the best approach/strategy a business should follow when adopting the technology. Barrie provides great advice in this regard.

Iress recently announced the launch of a new hub to provide free technology-related information and support for the financial services industry as it adjusts to new ways of working. I ask Barrie:

• Why did Iress decide to create the support hub?
• What kind of support does this offer?
• Who can make use of the support services?

You can access the Iress Support Hub at https://iress.com/coronavirus-support.

Connect with Barrie on Linkedin.
Connect with me on Linkedin.

Send us Fan Mail

First, we had email.  Then came websites.  Mobile phones evolved into smartphones. Not only did more people access information online, but they also started publishing more content online.  That sounds great, right?  More information at our fingertips.  However, it also means that it is becoming harder and harder to find exactly what we are looking for. Quickly and without effort.  How do we know the information and the person is credible? Can we trust the person and the information? For many, the noise has become unbearable.

Introducing Rizanne Oosthuisen

Our guest in this episode, Rizanne Oosthuisen, created a solution that is fast gaining traction among leading financial professionals. Many of whom have been guests on our podcast before.  That said, this is a solution and a tool that will help almost any kind of business set itself apart from the competition. And in the process, making it simple and easy for their clients to find the information they are looking for. Without breaking a sweat or becoming frustrated.

ProfileMe

The solution is called ProfileMe.  A well designed and purpose-driven website combined with ProfileMe and a well thought out strategy is guaranteed to help you take your business, and your brand, to a whole new level.

What we talk about

In this episode, we talk to Rizanne about her journey since 2000, how she built a great business and then lost everything.  She shares with us how she got back up and the new journey that led her to designing and creating ProfileMe.

Rizanne goes on to share interesting insights with regard to branding from a personal and business perspective.  She spices it up with mind-blowing statistics and learnings she had since starting to work within the financial services space. We also discuss the difference between branding and marketing.

After setting the scene, we get into the details of ProfileMe and what it can do for individuals and advisory businesses. One of the aspects we love most is that it allows the client access to information they are interested in, in a number of ways.  By simply clicking a button.

There is so much we discuss in the interview, so be sure to listen to the end.

Contact Rizanne

You can contact Rizanne:

• Her ProfileMe card
• Connect with her on Linkedin

Send us Fan Mail

Johan Oosthuizen is an International Coach Federation (ACC) member, a Results-Driven Gallup Certified Strengths Coach (Advanced), and a BP10 trained coach.  Johan has more than 34 years of experience of which he spent 23 years as a top Financial Advisor at a major life assurance company and for the last 10 years he has been specialising as a Gallup-Advance Certified Strengths and Business Profile Coach helping financial advisors and other professionals become the best version of themselves.

In the 1950's a life assurance company asked Dr. Donald Clifton to do research and to determine why financial advisors left the industry so frequently.  The study found that the reason financial advisors stay in the industry, is primarily because they are using their natural abilities and talents.

In this episode, we talk in-depth about talents, strengths, weaknesses and how one can go about becoming the best version of yourself.  Which inevitably leads to greater results and lasting success.

Why should we stop trying to focus on and to fix our weaknesses?

We discuss the difference between talents and strengths.

Where do you start if you want to determine what your talents and strengths are?  Some people intrinsically know, and there are several indicators, but many people have no clue.

Then, once you have determined your talents and natural abilities, what comes next?  How do you turn these talents into strengths?  There is a total of 7 milestones that one would want to reach in order to fully integrate everything you learn and to operate from a place of strength.  We talk about the first 3 milestones that are the starting point and basis for the rest of the milestones.

But is a strength always an advantage?  Do we always use it to our benefit?

People often mismanage some of their strengths and Johan shares which strengths are the easiest to mismanage.

We always hear how unique each one of us is.  Is that also the case when it comes to our talents?

We also discuss successful advisors and if they tend to have a particular set of talents and strengths.  The discussion around this will surprise you!

All of these aspects may seem fluffy or soft to you, so why should you care about getting to know your talents and developing them into strengths?  This is one of the most important questions I ask Johan in the interview.

If you are ready for the journey, should you go at it alone or should you get help from someone who can help you through the journey?  The answer to this was also interesting!

Another key message that we uncovered in the interview is that you don't have to be the best at everything.  You don't have to do everything yourself.  In fact, you shouldn't.  So what is the strategy and answer here?

Another key question is when is it suitable to start a journey to learn your talents and start to turn them into strengths?  

We end off the interview talking about different assessments and tools that are available to help you start your journey.

Johan can be contacted via:

• Linkedin
• Whatsapp/Telephone - 0828293277 
• Email

If you are interested in determining your Top 5 Talents (or even your full 34):

• Clifton Strengths Website

Send us Fan Mail

Lelane Bezuidenhout was appointed as the new CEO of the Financial Planning Institute of Southern Africa earlier in 2019, a welcomed move that brought back structure after some rough waters in 2018.  David Kop is the Executive Director of Relevance, a critical new role and he works closely alongside Lelane. 

In this interview, we discuss a variety of topical issues as well as the future (as far as 2050!), where things are headed, how financial planners must position themselves and what the FPI is doing to help guide them in the right direction.

We discuss the 4 areas that must be addressed:

1. Regulator or Policy Maker
2. The Consumer
3. The Practitioner
4. Employers of Financial Planners

David discusses some interesting statistics about consumers and the trust they have in the financial services industry and in financial planners.

An important aspect that is coming to the fore, is the regulation of FPTech (Financial Planning Technology).  We talk about who will be regulated and the importance of changing the current curriculum to incorporate the new way of working and how to harness the benefits of FPTech.

There are three designations offered by the FPI.  We discuss the roadmap for each designation as well as changes made since May 2019.

Financial Literacy is a crucial aspect that must be addressed, not only in South Africa but on a global level.  We discuss the newly proposed framework, standards, and designation that will be introduced to ensure financial literacy facilitators adhere to the same levels of competence and standards.  The aim is to create a new industry that will benefit everyone.

We end off with talking about the FPI's vision, their focus for the next 12 months and some of the learnings that Lelane brought back from the recently held FPSB global meeting which was attended by 25 affiliated territories.

Send us Fan Mail

Hugo van Zyl CA(SA) TEP MTP(SA) is well-known for his expertise in cross-border tax and financial planning.  It is no surprise that his colleagues refer to him as “ask Hue’Gle” when all other resources fail.  His track record speaks for itself.

In this episode, we get into the nitty-gritty of the changes to the so-called "expat tax" in South Africa.  With the new changes already enacted into law, the implementation of the new changes has been deferred until 1 March 2020.  Many expats have not considered the impact this will have on them.  Financial Advisors are just as confused in many cases and are at a loss when having to point their clients in the right direction.

Some of the aspects we discuss include:

• Does cross-border tax and exchange control only apply to certain groups or individuals;
• Is it a requirement to give up your South African citizenship or to give up your South African passport when you immigrate;
• Section 10(1)(o)(ii) of the Income Tax Act change - the new R1m exemption on foreign employment income cap explained and who it applies to;
• How much of the foreign tax paid can be used as a credit against tax payable in South Africa;
• Financial Emigration - myth or solution;
• Who can use the 330-day rule;
• Double Tax Treaties - the big solution;
• Exit Tax payable on immigration and how much it is for different entities;
• The UAE and its treaty in detail;
• We answer 7 questions from our listeners
  1. What should financial advisors consider and what questions should they ask clients living and working abroad;
  2. Trustees of a trust who emigrate - what are the considerations;
  3. What should young professionals consider when moving abroad;
  4. What happens to tax already paid in the foreign country;
  5. What are the options for a person currently working in Zambia who is planning to retire in the next 3 years;
  6. What should a person do who works in Saudi Arabia, but their spouse is still living in South Africa;
  7. Foreign Investment Allowances;

We also discuss Circular 4 of 2014 that caters for life and living annuities to be paid directly to a foreign bank account if the Annuitant has a foreign FICA address.  Such payments will not affect the person's discretionary travel allowance nor their R10m annual allowance.

Minutes after the interview, SARS issued an FAQ document that confirms everything we discussed in the interview.  You can download it here.

Enjoy the episode!

Send us Fan Mail

We recently presented a webinar on "7 powerful habits to build a legendary financial services practice".

In this episode, we share 3 of these habits.  This is not about how long it takes to form or change a habit but about practical actions and steps you can take to attain the success you aspire to.

The habits required to build your practice is vastly different from the habits already successful people practice.

Listen to the end where we share important information and how you can earn CPD for this webinar.  Enjoy the episode.

Send us Fan Mail

The biggest challenge (and frustration) for any FSP of any size is to manage commissions, ongoing fees, and other revenue.  Each product provider has its own unique format for commission statements and even what they call different commissions.  Commissions come in, commissions go out.  Managing splits to advisors in the FSP or referral fees to outside professionals is a nightmare for most.

Managing the FSP's finances is critical.  Whether you are an independent working alone or whether you run an FSP with multiple advisors, each with their own unique agreement, a system to manage it all is a must.

Today we talk to Johan Vosloo, founder, and CEO of Commspace.  We talk about how Commspace came about and their early day challenges.  

Johan shares what makes Commspace unique and how they offer their White Glove Onboarding process to every new client and only once the client is happy then they start paying for the service.

We also discuss the use of technology in general and the importance of integration.

If you've been wondering how you can take control of your commission chaos or whether there are solutions available to manage and analyse commission... then this is the episode to listen to.

Send us Fan Mail

atWork was the first cloud-based CRM system for Financial Advisers.  The software was developed for the first time in 1998, long before the cloud became a thing and when users struggled with dial-up modems and the cost of making a call instead of the data they used.

In this episode, we talk with Trevor Stacey, Director: Business Development for atWork to learn everything about the software and why they became so popular.

We discuss the humble beginnings and the growth they went through over the years.  Two and half years ago they embarked on a re-write of the entire system, culminating in version 6 of the software that will launch later in 2019.

The new enhancements and configurability of version 6 take the software's competitiveness to a new level.  And with over 7 000 users, they have no shortage in people helping to share their story and value offering.

Trevor tells us about their recent expansion internationally and how it came about and we talk in detail about their client portal functionality.

We also discuss the license fee structures and the training and support they provide to users.

If you are interested in talking to atWork or to book a demo, you can contact them on the information below:

Website                              www.atwork.co.za

atWORK                              [email protected]

atWORK                              0861 289675

LinkedIn                              www.linkedin.com/in/trevorstacey/ 

Email                                   [email protected]

Send us Fan Mail

Much has transpired in the last 6 weeks as the first CPD cycle came to an end on 31 May 2019.

In this episode, we talk about what happened when the 2-month exemption was announced, Francois's Linkedin post that went viral and the comment that made the lightbulb go on.

We discuss why CPD was introduced and why it plays a crucial role.

We bust several myths that started to do the rounds, we clarify the exact requirements that must be adhered to and what FSPs and key individuals must have in place to prove that the requirements have been met.

Download the publications we talk about in the episode:

• FAIS Notice 40 of 2019 - Exemption announced
• Communication 2 of 2019 - Clarifying CPD requirements