Members of Parliament will gain the final authority over who receives tax relief if the new Tax Procedures (Amendment) Bill, 2024, becomes law. This bill proposes changes to the Tax Procedures Act (Cap 469B), shifting some power from the Treasury Cabinet Secretary and the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) Commissioner General to the legislators.
Currently, the Tax Procedures Act permits individuals or companies to request amnesty from the KRA Commissioner for unpaid penalties and to propose a payment plan for any outstanding amounts. If the KRA Commissioner finds that recovering the taxes is likely to be challenging, they forward the case to the Treasury Cabinet Secretary, who then decides whether to approve or reject the request.
The bill specifies that the Cabinet Secretary may approve relief for part or all of the tax due or instruct the Commissioner in writing to take the appropriate action. Additionally, the Cabinet Secretary will be required to present the tax relief notice to the National Assembly for final approval.
The bill mandates that the Cabinet Secretary must also publish the names of the taxpayers receiving amnesty, the reasons for the relief, and the amount of taxes waived.
National Assembly Majority Leader Kimani Ichung’wah, who introduced the bill, emphasizes that the amendment is designed to prevent the abuse of the tax waiver system.
According to the bill, the Cabinet Secretary must gazette any approved reliefs and present them to Parliament. This process allows Parliament to scrutinize and oversee the Cabinet Secretary’s decisions.
This proposal marks its second introduction after initially being shelved in the repealed Finance Bill 2024.
