The submission of tax returns in Johannesburg has been severely disrupted by a power cut, which has affected most of the CBD area. The South African Revenue Service (SARS) has however implemented emergency measures to cope with the problem.The cut-off time for submission is 4pm and strict penalties for late payers are to be imposed from Monday.

SARS spokesperson Adrain Lackay says they had to ask the taxpayers to leave and refer others to another service point at the Library Gardens. Lackay says the taxpayers who they could not assist were given a ticket with a unique number and they can come back in the course of next week to submit their returns without facing penalties.

He added that there is a tent operating as a service point in Library Gardens that is functional and is running on generated power.

Meanwhile, officials also say there are long queues at SARS offices throughout the country.