Value Added Tax (VAT) is one of 9 topics in the Grade 11 Accounting CAPS syllabus, covered across 3 lessons on Study Vault. Below are real practice questions from this topic with full worked answers.
Sample practice questions
Easy
1. A VAT-registered business essentially acts as:
A collection agent, charging VAT on sales and paying VAT on purchases, then settling the difference with SARS
The final bearer of all VAT costs
An entity completely exempt from any VAT obligations
A business that sets its own VAT rate
Answer: A collection agent, charging VAT on sales and paying VAT on purchases, then settling the difference with SARS — A VAT vendor collects VAT on behalf of SARS, charging VAT Output on sales and paying VAT Input on purchases, then pays over the difference (or claims a refund).
Easy
2. The current standard VAT rate in South Africa is:
15%
10%
20%
12,5%
Answer: 15% — South Africa's standard VAT rate is 15%.
Medium
3. A zero-rated item, such as brown bread, differs from a VAT-exempt item because:
A zero-rated item is technically VAT-able at 0%, allowing input VAT to still be claimed on related purchases, while an exempt item falls completely outside the VAT system
A zero-rated item is more expensive than an exempt item
VAT-exempt items are always subject to the full 15% rate
There is no meaningful difference between them
Answer: A zero-rated item is technically VAT-able at 0%, allowing input VAT to still be claimed on related purchases, while an exempt item falls completely outside the VAT system — Zero-rated supplies are still within the VAT system (charged at 0%), so related input VAT can be claimed; exempt supplies fall entirely outside the VAT system, so no input VAT can be claimed on them.
