Entry Instance

HTTP 200 OK
Allow: GET, PUT, PATCH, DELETE, HEAD, OPTIONS
Content-Type: application/json
Vary: Accept

{
    "id": 910344,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/910344/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 312,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Mr. Henry Rotich",
    "speaker_title": "The Cabinet Secretary for the National Treasury",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13142,
        "legal_name": "Henry Rotich",
        "slug": "henry-rotich"
    },
    "content": "Hon. Speaker, the Kenyan economy and the world economy at large, is fast changing to keep up with technological advancements. In particular, the digital economy is fast evolving thereby posing challenges to taxation. This is due to the unparalleled reliance on intangibles, the massive use of data, the widespread adoption of multi-sided business models and the difficulty of determining the jurisdiction in which value creation occurs. This has led to erosion of our tax base, hence low tax revenue since the existing system is not equipped to deal with these emerging challenges. In this regard, I have proposed a raft of tax measures that are aimed at providing the platform for taxation of income generated from the digital economy so as to boost our revenues for inclusive economic development. In my Budget Statement last year, I had indicated that the draft Income Tax Bill, 2018, would be submitted to Parliament for enactment. The Bill is at an advanced stage of legal drafting and I will soon be submitting the same to this House. This Bill will modernise our Income Tax legislation so as to boost revenue mobilisation. The VAT Act provides for refund of tax where the input tax exceeds the output tax for taxable supplies and full of input tax attributed to zero-rated supplies. In 2017, the VAT Regulations introduced a formula for determination of the amount of refund payable to taxpayers who supply both zero-rated and standard-rated supplies. However, the application of the formula is adversely affecting exporters as they are not able to fully recover the excess input tax relating to zero-rated supplies. To address this, I propose to adjust the VAT refund formula in order to ensure that these taxpayers are able to fully recover the portion of input tax relating to zero-rated supplies. This measure will boost Kenyan exports and make them competitive in the international market. In addition, the Value Added Withholding Tax (VAWT) system has been in operation for some time now. However, the implementation of the system has encountered challenges, the major one being a build-up of huge credits, yet the law does not provide for refund of the same to The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposes only. Acertified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor."
}