The move by the Kenyan taxman to audit the social media lifestyle of taxpayers has had a positive effect on tax compliance.
In the week since KRA Commissioner General Githii Mburu said the authority uses technology to monitor taxpayers, the taxman has seen a steady rise in the number of Kenyans rushing to verify their tax compliance status.
KRA Deputy Commissioner in charge of Marketing and Communications Ms Grace Wandera confirmed the spike saying applications for compliance certificates rose by more than 60%.
Ms Wandera praised Kenyans on Twitter(KoT) and online content creators who have actively conceptualised witty content on KRA engagements with taxpayers, saying such posts positively influence tax compliance awareness.
“Within the confines of the law, we do apply social media scans among other technological tax compliance surveillance systems. This week, we have seen a more than 60% rise in the number of tax compliance certificates applications lodged on the online i-Tax platform,” Ms Wandera said.
She added that: “the spike is commendable as it means Taxpayers are willing to comply, and KRA is at hand to provide the necessary support. KRA is a very dynamic organisation that will continue providing tax facilitation services to boost compliance.”
Last month, KRA collected Sh154.383 billion against a target of Sh142.285 billion.
