The Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) is stepping up its fight against tax cheats in the betting sector by increasing the number of companies it has real-time access to from 6 to 16. According to Rispah Simiyu, KRA’s Commissioner of Domestic Taxes, the new system requires companies to compute and pay taxes due every day, a departure from the past when taxes were paid the following month after they fell due.
KRA implemented a new system to increase their visibility of real-time betting transactions and improve revenue collection in the sports betting industry. This move is in response to the challenges faced in detecting tax evasion in the sector. The system will integrate with the betting industry in two phases, focusing on daily tax remittances and real-time data transmission. It will help the KRA seal any tax leakages and improve revenue collection.
In mid-November 2022, the top six payers in the sports betting industry began to make daily payments for excise and withholding taxes on winnings, following a pilot program lead by SportPesa, a major player in the industry. The pilot program was implemented before rolling out to the remaining five companies, all of which are included in the first phase of integration.
In mid-November 2022, the top six payers in the sports betting industry began daily remittances of excise and withholding tax on winnings, following a successful pilot by SportPesa, one of the largest sports betting companies. The pilot was conducted before implementation of the new system with the other five companies, all of whom fall into the first phase of integration.
Treasury PS Chris Kiptoo stated that the Treasury and KRA are working to improve tax administration measures to achieve revenue collection goals. One of these measures is the integration of the KRA system with the sports betting industry. The new system will increase revenue by verifying the data transmitted in real-time. The KRA will immediately check the data received to ensure it aligns with the taxes paid by the betting companies.
The Kenya Revenue Authority is increasing its efforts to combat tax evasion in the betting sector by increasing the number of companies it has real-time access. The new system requires companies to compute and pay taxes due every day, which will give the KRA more visibility of real-time betting transactions. Intergration of the KRA system with the betting sector is part of the revenue administration’s aim to seal all the tax leakages in the lucrative sports betting sector and improve revenue collection from the gambling craze.