Michael Honiball is a Partner in the Tax Advisory Department of leading African legal firm Webber Wentzel. He is based in the Johannesburg office but also consults from the Cape Town office of Webber Wentzel. Michael is a Professor in the Faculty of Economic Financial Sciences at the University of Johannesburg. He has also co-authored and published the books “International Tax: A South African Perspective” and “The Taxation of Trusts in South Africa” along with Professor Lynette Olivier of the University of Johannesburg. He is the former head of the Transfer Pricing Department of KPMG in South Africa. With extensive international & corporate tax advisory experience, Michael has a wide portfolio of both corporate and high net wealth individual clients. Michael was one of the principal lecturers on the H Dip Tax / LLM tax course of the University of the Witwatersrand from 1996 until 2009 and he was instrumental in developing the Higher Diploma in International Tax at the University of Johannesburg.
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Current Position:
Michael joined Webber Wentzel in October 2008, and specializes in international tax, trust taxation and exchange control.
Prior KPMG Roles and Responsibilities:
Michael was the head of the Transfer Pricing Department for KPMG in South Africa, consulting from both the Johannesburg and Cape Town offices. This included Global Transfer Pricing Services (GTPS) for KPMG in South African and membership of the KPMG EMA GTPS Leadership Group. Michael was also the head of Marketing and Business Development for KPMG Tax & Legal South Africa.
Prior to this he was with Arthur Andersen for 11 years, being a Tax Partner from 1998 until the merger with KPMG in 2002. He was the head of International Tax for KPMG in South Africa from 2002 until 2007, where he grew this practice from 1 director to 4 directors and from 8 fee-earners to 30 fee-earners.
Education and Qualifications
Professional Qualifications:
Michael’s qualifications include a BA LLB (University of Stellenbosch), an LLM in tax law (Rand Afrikaans University), a Higher Diploma in tax law (Rand Afrikaans University) and a Corporate law Diploma (Rand Afrikaans University) (Cum Laude).
Qualifications:
He is an admitted Attorney and Conveyancer in the High Court of South Africa (Cape Division). He has attended numerous international tax courses in Europe and has published tax publications locally and internationally. He was a principal lecturer on the H Dip Tax/LLM tax course of the University of the Witwatersrand for many years. He helped develop the Higher Diploma in International Tax at the University of Johannesburg. Michael lectures on international tax for the MCom (Tax) and the LLM (tax) at the University of Johannesburg where he is a visiting Professor in the Department of Accountancy. He has had extensive international tax experience, servicing most of KPMG’s major clients in South Africa and Internationally. As head of transfer pricing services for KPMG in South Africa and he signed off on numerous global documented transfer pricing studies both for inbound and outbound investors. He is co-author of the book “International Tax, a South African Perspective”, co-authored with Professor Lynette Olivier of the University of Johannesburg, and is also co-author of the book “The Taxation Trusts in South Africa”, also co-authored with Professor Lynette Oliver.
Skills
- International Corporate Tax
- Transfer Pricing
- Exchange Control Regulations
- Trust Taxation
- Trust Law
Experience Summary
Key Areas of Experience:
Michael has extensive corporate and international tax experience in mergers and acquisitions, corporate restructure, inbound and outbound investment, and Capital Gains Tax. He was actively involved in most large acquisitions involving KPMG’s South African clients, helping to structure acquisitions and disposals in a tax efficient manner.
Areas of Experience which at KPMG included:
- South African Corporate Tax Law
- International Tax, encompassing CFC rules, DTA application, extensive cross-border structuring experience, inbound and outbound investment and transfer pricing
- Exchange Control
- Trust Taxation
Other Responsibilities:
Michael is a Member of the Executive Committee of the South African Fiscal Association, which is the South African branch of the International Fiscal Association and was selected as South African National Reporter for 2000 with publication of an article on hybrid financial instruments in 2000 Cahiers de Droit Fiscal International. He was also the author of the South African Chapter of the KPMG Global Mergers & Acquisitions Handbook for 2005 to 2008.
Market Summary:
Michael has provided tax advice to a number of major international mining groups; pharmaceutical conglomerates; industrial and automotive; utility companies and multinational financial services, both locally and abroad.
Presentations given:
IIR Transfer Pricing Seminar (18 September 2003), Transfer Pricing Conference (May 2004), SAFA Seminar on Transfer Pricing (2008), The Mandela Institute Tax Update Seminar (2006 and 2008) and numerous other seminars.
Publications:
Michael has also co-authored and published the books “International Tax – A South African Perspective” and “The Taxation of Trusts in South Africa” along with his co-author Professor Lynette Olivier.
Industry Experience:
- Pharmaceuticals
- Mining
- Power and Utilities
- Automotive
- Financial Services
- Business Services – Professionals
Location Experience:
- South Africa
- Botswana
- Namibia
Employment History Summary:
Michael joined Webber Wentzel’s Corporate Tax Department as a Partner in October, 2008. Prior to this he was the Head of Transfer Pricing for KPMG in South Africa from September 2006 to September 2008. Michael joined KPMG as a Director in July 2002 and was the Head of International Corporate Tax until August 2006. Prior to this, he was with Arthur Andersen in Johannesburg for 11 years. His employment history at Arthur Anderson is as follows: Tax Partner (1998 to 2002); Senior Tax Manager (1997 – 1998); Tax Manager (1993 – 1996); Tax Experienced Senior (1992); Tax Senior (1991). Prior to this, Michael completed his Candidate Attorney articles at Silberbauers Attorneys in Cape Town (1989 – 1990), after having been a Legal Officer (Lieutenant) in the South African Navy from 1987 to 1988.
Accolades:
- Michael is a member of the Executive of the South African Fiscal Association, the local branch of IFA
- Co-author, together with Professor Lynette Olivier, of the book, “International Tax – A South African Perspective” (Fourth Edition 2008) Siber Ink
- Chairman of the Cape Town branch of The Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (UK)
- Examiner for the Chartered Institute of Taxation (UK)
- Member of the BNA Transfer Pricing Forum (UK)
- Member of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP) and
- Included in the Guide to the World’s Leading Tax Advisers 7th Edition
