Kenyan Tax Collections Rise

by Lorys Charalambous, Tax-News.com, Cyprus

28 July 2009

The Kenyan Revenue Authority has reported that, in the fiscal year to June 2009, cumulative revenue collection totaled KES480bn (USD6.4bn), against a budget of KES492bn (USD6.5bn) – a revenue shortfall of some 2.5%. However, this also represented revenue growth of almost 15% above amounts collected in the 2007/08 fiscal year.

All revenue departments registered significant growth in revenue collection compared with the 2007/08 fiscal year. The highest growth rates were registered in domestic taxes at over 15%, followed by customs services at 14%.

Key reforms and administrative measures were put in place during the year. For example, the Authority implemented the first phase of an integrated tax management system, and online registration of taxpayers was one of the services that have been rolled out. As at the end of June 2009, almost 123,000 taxpayers had registered as users of online services.

The Authority said that dealing with tax fraud is a major challenge. In order to succeed, it said, it needs the support of the public, including clearing agents and importers. For example, the Authority has signed an MOU with the Kenya International Freight Forwarders and Warehousing Association to help stem corruption among its members. The Authority believes its efforts are bearing fruit as growth in annual collections is partly attributable to sealing off the revenue leakage loopholes.

It noted that the 2009/10 fiscal year will be characterized by a continued implementation of reforms and administrative measures to enhance revenue collection. The revenue target for this year is more than KES545bn, representing a growth of 13.5% over actual revenue collected in 2008/09.

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