Another year, another variant, another lockdown. Who would have thought that this year, South African indie authors would be getting an Xmas present we really wanted?
Our journey to financial emancipation begins within the Amazon KDP backend, the section oft hidden behind Amazon’s paranoid OTP access. This section is typically where the indie author shares intimate details such as their physical address, tax information as well as banking information.
Up till recently, setting up banking info with Amazon – for those of us from the 3rd World – was a painful process, feeling a little like this =
Amazon = So author, where do you live?
Author = South Africa
Amazon = Shame, let us post you a royalty check*
*Fine print: Once you earn over $100 [Evil Laughter]
For years 3rd World authors have been relegated to receive hard-earned financial appreciation via posted check. Kak right?
How it was. (Using Payoneer to collect Amazon payments)
For authors wanting to level up, we started using the Payoneer banking platform. This platform gave writers from Developing Nations a fighting chance by issuing us banking details held in the 1st World. Amazon would accept these details, begrudgingly releasing our pittance into our Payoneer accounts. Well, up to 60 days after the month in which your book was sold. Close enough. These funds could then be withdrawn to our local accounts.
As simple as the Payoneer platform might seem, this extra step still meant that many of our less tech-savvy authors were getting left getting behind, unable to collects royalties from Amazon who – like a pouting child – still refuses to talk with PayPal ☹
This has now changed. For South African authors at least.
How it can be. (Getting paid directly.)
Logging into the Amazon KDP account screen – Amazon’s banking section now opens up for us Saffers to enter our local banking info directly. Yay 🥳
I don’t for a second think that this means million will flood your bank account however, you and I both know how important monetary validation is for authors. Those few ZARs reaching your account on a monthly basis might just be the motivation needed for you to pull finger, wikkel daai boude and carry on writing.
Now. Before you fall out of your chair, frothing from excitement, there are a few things I want to cover.
Currency Conversions ($ -> R)
You never have to worry about seeing Dollars landing in your account. Amazon will be converting your royalties, typically earned in Dollars into our local ZAR currency at a spot conversion rate.
It Takes Time
Don’t forget that royalty payments from Amazon can take time before a book sold results in cash in your account. I know how frustrating this can feel for the eager author. However, before you throw up your arms in frustration, placing a long distance call to Amazon support – try browsing your “Payments” report tab from the KDP Reporting backend. Do you see any payments falling due?
Once you have added local banking details to Amazon; expect the following to happen…
MEET THE sarb (South African Reserve Bank)
After capturing your local banking info you will more than likely be greeted by a message directly underneath, something to the effect of…
“To receive your payments, choose a Purpose of Payment (PoP) on the South Africa Reserve Bank. You must update this information one time per calendar year. If your PoP expires, Amazon’s banking partner will contact you to update it.”
I take this to mean that once payments from Amazon are made to your local account you should expect an email to be sent that will require your attention before the payments are allowed through. This emailed form will need to be updated every 12 months.
I am not 100% sure which email they might send this too, whether it is the one registered with Amazon OR the one you might have registered with the local bank.
Here is the example email I received. This email I then received from linked to a form I needed to complete online. (Your email might look different…)
After signing the above mandate online earlier in the year, I still received the SMS below from my local Standard Bank at the time Amazon made the first payments asking for the reasons I was receiving money.
The SMS (received from your local bank)
Once the yearly, emailed mandate was completed AND I had replied to the SMS from my local bank I was greeted by the following entry on my local banking platform 🥳
it arrived!
So, we have proven that local payments are indeed an option for local authors…
How does SARS tax royalties?
To my knowledge, royalties from sales of your books (that SARS knows about) is taxed “in hand”. SARS will include any royalties earned from sales of your book as part of the taxable income you declare at the end of each financial year. Meaning you might just be nudged into the next PAYE income tax bracket from the payments you receive.
If you are wondering whether it would be better to leave your royalties within your Payoneer account rather than bringing them into the country, I suggest you start a conversation with whoever you might be paying to help with your yearly tax submissions 😊
Why now?
For years, South African indie authors have been fighting for recognition from Amazon. Perhaps the opening of the local Amazon head office here in Cape Town has fast tracked the process of putting SA on Amazon’s radar.
How long before our brothers and sisters from other neglected territories get the same local banking option from Amazon KDP?
Will local payments be better than collecting into an international account such as Payoneer? Time will tell, but what I do know is that more options never hurt anyone.
Hi Dave,
Thanks for the vid.
Where do I update the pop (purpose of payment)? It seems that could be the reason why my royalties can’t be paid. But for the love of me I can’t find that section to complete it. That field does not display under the banking details. Please assist?
Thank you in advance
Glad it helped Heinz! The pop arrangement is handled outside of Amazon. It would be something emailed to your inbox that your bank/ SARB might have on record. I see it normally come through via a rather informal-looking with the name of Exchange4Free or something similar. This email takes you to an online form that needs to be completed each year in order to receive payments.
Hi Dave, I received the same Xchange4free mail about my tax, but I was worried by the level of info required. I forwarded it to Amazon, who said is was phishing.
So if I understand you correctly, my local bank will contact me if money is supposed to come from Amazon?
Hey Philip, the exchange4free email is a legit one. I completely understand the scepticism, especially seeing how the email and website are formatted, but the questions asked are needed by SARS. Amazon has a blanket tendency to deny all things as scams or phishing. In this case at least they are wrong. The money will likely never reach your bank account without the local form being answered. I also called the guys from Exhnage4Free before to have a conversation which put my mind at ease 🙂
Hi Dave
Thanks for the info. Im based in Namibia. Can I choose Direct Deposit in South Africa? considering that FNB Namibia is linked to South Africa.
Hey Saara! If you are able to access a bank account based in South Africa, this sounds like it would work for you 🙂
Hi there Dave
Thank you so much for your informative video. As part of the SA writing community wanting to get in on the Amazon action, it was a blessing when you video popped into my feed. I have struggled with the POP issue with Amazon for quite some time. I queried the issue with Amazon Help and was advised to complete the tax interview in order to proceed. Amazon requires all publishers, including non-profit, tax-exempt organizations, and non-US residents to provide valid taxpayer identity information using their online tax interview in order to comply with U.S. tax reporting regulations. Completing the interview establishes the proper tax classification and residency status and ensures that Amazon has the information necessary in order to treat the account correctly for withholding and reporting purposes.
This ties in with what you advised me to do Dave namely, complete the tax interview. I then proceeded to do this and being from SA it resulted in 0% withholding rate. I then signed the electronic tax form they generated and from that point I was able to return to my profile and submit my book for publication.
As many have pointed out, the banking information fields that we are required to complete do not make provision for the name of the banking institution, merely the account number and the branch number. I am hoping that Amazon has their functionalities with the SARB to link the correct bank. As you mentioned Dave, I think the POP request will trigger once a purchase has been made and before the royalty payment is released. This will be my first trial with Amazon so I will wait and see what happens in a few months and report back to this forum, including how SARS treats the royalties.
Looking forward to your further videos Dave, thank you so much!
I cannot wait to make more videos just for you – hope to see you in the comments again soon!
Aah, much appreciated Dave, thank you kindly.
Hi Dave
Thank you so much for the information. I recently published my first book and must complete the relevant form for the SARB to receive my first royalties from Amazon.
If I may ask, what was the reason you chose to receive your royalties from Amazon? I find the reason for REASONS FOR TRANSFERS given on the Exchange form very vague and I want to make sure that I choose the correct option to avoid future tax difficulties or irregularities.
Hey Talita, I just checked with my accountants. They recommended using code 4278, Foreign Royalties. This would need to be declared on your personal income tax return. Hope this helps you.
Alas, no luck – their form for filling in banking details is plain bizarre. They don’t ask the name of the bank, just the account number! And then they ask something called a BSB number, which, they say, “appears at the bottom of your check as a second set of numbers.”
But, um, I have a savings account, not a check account, and I specified that. Ain’t no such thing as a check in South Africa anymore.
So I tried the help desk. But that requires me to log in again, and they no longer accept my login information: the page just keeps on throwing back the same login screen.
It’s difficult to believe that a company with this sort of service and systems can keep on existing.
Yeah, I am feeling your pain Brian. BTW, BSB is the branch code. You can also select “savings” where they ask you for “Type of Account”. Hope this helps you 🙂
Hi Dave,
Does KDP pay royalties via wire transfer or direct deposit (eft)?
I have searched and cannot seem to get a clear answer.
Hey Hazel! This largely depends on the country you are from, or at least the country you have entered into the KDP banking section. For South Africans, you are now able to get paid via EFT into our local bank accounts (FNB, Standard Bank, ABSA etc) – Hope this helps you 🙂
Ahh, thank you so much. I’m from South Africa so it’s a relief to hear that it’s via eft. I know there’s a minimum amount applied to whatever currency the book is sold in with wire transfers.
Hi Dave there is no section where you enter which bank you use. How do they know which bank to pay to?
You are 100% correct.(Unfortunately.) I am not sure why they would not ask for both the bank SWIFT code and the bank name too. My advice, if enough of us can pepper Amazon with queries, emails and calls I am hoping they might pull finger and help us sort out banking for SA authors.
Hi Lois
Thank you for the information but how do I update the POP?
Hey Rahaba, this is normally a link to an online form emailed to the author when the first funds are sent by Amazon. At least, it was this way for me.
Thank you for your information I am in Nigeria right now, that was the same challenge we are facing here” that’s why I will not advise anyone who wants to stand out in the global world of writing to live in Nigeria because for you to get your money is like hell.
Thanks for sharing Paul, and so sorry for the frustrations you are having collecting royalties! Does the Payoneer platform work for you in Nigeria?
Dave, I want to thank you for being so transparent with this information. Was wondering what quote-unquote “To receive your payments, choose a Purpose of Payment (PoP) (sometimes called Reason for Transfer) on the South Africa Reserve Bank. You must update this information one time per calendar year. If your PoP expires, Amazon’s banking partner will contact you to update it.”
Meant, however now I know and I thanks very much.
Hey Phillip, it is only a pleasure to help!
Regarding your SARB query -> Each year my bank shares an online questionnaire with me over email to better understand where my money is coming from. They also SMS me each time Amazon pays me royalties. I then have to respond before they release the funds. Messy, but it does work 🙂
Hi, Dave, what a relief to read this info, and thank you so much for sharing it. From my side, I regret coming to read this blog only now. Since the end of last year, I have been with Amazon and whatever royalty I have received is staying with Poyneer. I must make all the changes now as per the info in your post and hope for an easy transformation.
Glad you found us Prasanna!
I am sorry, but it would still be impossible to receive payments in South Africa, as Amazon requires you to specify a BSB number, which of course South African Banks don’t have. Plus, the fields that I am seeing on my screen do not even have a “Name of Bank” field at the bottom.
Hey Chris, sorry you are struggle loading the SA banking details with Amazon KDP! MYself and a whole host of authors currently receive our royalties so I know the method does work. For the BSB, I simply used the banking branch code. Let me know if you are still stuck and I would love to guide you through the banking details section…
Hi, Thank you for the awesome share! I am new to Amazon KDP.
My question is if I am not registered for tax, what do I do?
Amazon needs my tax information…please advise.
Thanks
Hello! You are able to complete the Tax Interview with or without a tax number. It will however mean that Amazon wants to withhold 30% from your royalties before paying them out. It is not only Amazon, I think most other major retailers have a Tax Interview of sorts too. Bottom line, still complete the interview even if you dont have the number. Then possibly retake the interview when you do have one?
Thank you for this valuable information. I was specifically looking for an answer re what a BSB number is when opening an Amazon account for South Africans. i was sent from pillar to post at Standard Bank as they could not help me. It is the branch code. Many thanks
Hey there Megan, thanks for the comment. Glad you managed to come right with the banking info too 🙂
Hi Dave, cute, dig this. Good of you to put this data up. Thanks bro, Mauritz
Anytime Mauritz, glad it came in handy!
Dave,in a case where the money has already been paid in to a payoneer account,how does one transfer it over to a SA bank?
I had a quick Google and found this article describing how to withdraw funds from Payoneer to your local account: https://payoneer.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/18605/~/withdraw-to-bank—faq
When i made it to this stage, the Account person’s name and account number were already filled in by default for some reason and it was not my details – the system did not allow me to change these details for some reason – i could not enter my account number or my name
The name “Noma Modise” came up as the default name.
Any idea how i can change this to my details?
Hey there Nish! Please confirm if you a struggling with Amazon KDP details or rather the details with Payoneer? Details from within Amazon are usually able to be updated fairly simply…
Hi Dave. Thank you for this very helpful blog. I would like to ask 2 things. 1. Can the BSB be the universal branch number or the specific one for the bank. 2. If I fill in my SA TIN number does it mean Amazon will not deduct witholding tax. If thry are deducting the tax do I still pay income tax on the royalties I receive?
Hey Monica!
1. Yes, BSB could be the universal branch code – I think that is actually how I did mine.
2. Correct, entering your SA income tax number means Amazon should release all funds and not withhold anything.
2b. For the local income tax implications I recommend chatting with an accountant. It largely depends on if you have a publishing business registered or not. Most authors would declare royalties and add to taxable income on your PAYE with SARS….
Hi Dave,
Is it possible to use your personal TAX number or must it be a business TAX number?
Hey Yvette, I assume you are talking about the Amazon Tax Interview? My advice (at least for South Africans) is to submit the tax interview as an individual rather than a company. I have never been able to fully reduce the royalties withheld when completing the tax interview as a company….hope this helps you.
Hi thanks, I am curious, what did you reply to the SMS? Gift, Salary, Travel or did you reply with “Royalties”?
Well spotted! For the purposes of the test I just replied GIFT as I wanted to make sure the process worked. I would check with my accountant if I was the author collecting the payments on a regular basis. Let me know once you get your first payments? Excited to see it work for others too!
Thank you for this info.
What is a BSB number – Nedbank does not know
Hey Lois, reply glad the article helped you! BSB is your bank Branch number 🙂
A BSB (Bank State Branch) number is a 6 digit sort code used by Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. It should be included in the ‘Account holding branch’ field when making a payment on Bank online.
You need to provide the following account details to receive an international money transfer (this is Standard Bank’s):
Account number/IBAN number: Provide your Standard Bank account number
Branch/SORT code: If this information is requested, please advise the sender of the universal Standard Bank Code (051001) to ensure that the branch code is not provided in the same field as your account number
Account type: It is recommended that you use a cheque / savings account to receive international payments
Standard Bank’s SWIFT address: SBZAZAJJ
Thanks for the feedback Francis!
Hi Francine
Where do you enter the SWIFT address? I do not see a section for it.