Kenya Proposes Extension of Tax Amnesty to 2025, Introduces New Tax Relief Provisions. The Kenyan government is pushing for an extension of the Kenya Revenue Authority’s (KRA) Tax Amnesty Programme through the Tax Procedures (Amendment) Bill, 2024.
This bill aims to extend the amnesty deadline from June 30, 2024, to June 30, 2025, offering more Kenyans a chance to settle unpaid taxes.
The proposal also introduces a tax recovery relief provision. Under this new framework, the Cabinet Secretary for Treasury can grant relief when tax recovery becomes too challenging, costly, or unfair.
The KRA Commissioner will recommend cases, and the Cabinet Secretary will determine if full or partial relief is appropriate.
Kenya Proposes Extension of Tax Amnesty to 2025: Transparency Measure
To ensure transparency, the Cabinet Secretary is required to publish the names of beneficiaries and the reasons for the relief every four months in the Gazette, with notices also submitted to the National Assembly for approval or potential annulment.
This move comes amid pressure from small traders and advocacy groups who seek to extend the amnesty to cover taxes accrued after December 2022.
Supreme Court of Kenya Reinstates 2023 Tax Act, Restores Collection
Initially introduced by the Finance Act of 2023, the tax amnesty program allowed taxpayers to apply for waivers on penalties and interest linked to tax debts incurred up to December 31, 2022.
Running from September 1, 2023, to June 30, 2024, the program saw KRA collect Kes.43.9 billion from 1,064,667 taxpayers while waiving penalties and interest totaling Kes.507.7 billion for over 3 million individuals.
Under the current scheme, only the principal tax amount must be paid, with waivers on penalties and interest available.
However, the new proposal expands potential relief to include all taxes, subject to Cabinet Secretary and National Assembly approval.
In addition, the bill seeks to change the process for lodging tax objections, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and public holidays from the computation of time, making it more favourable for taxpayers.
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