The Independent Uganda: You get the Truth we Pay the Price
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) has so far registered a revenue collection of 12.16 trillion shillings in the current financial year 2018/2019.
The collection registered as at March 2019 is part of the total 16.4 trillion shillings targeted revenue collection at the end of the financial year on 30th, June 2019.
Appearing before Parliament’s Finance Committee, URA Commissioner General, Doris Akol revealed the collections also noting that the taxpayer register had grown by 89,617 taxpayers representing a 6.79 percent growth.
Akol had appeared together with other officials from the tax collection body to present the Authority’s budget estimates for the coming financial year 2019/2020. She told the committee chaired by Rubanda East MP Henry Musasizi that they predict realizing the set revenue collection target for this financial year given the progress registered so far.
However, Akol said that they still face challenges in domestic revenue mobilization noting that some policy measures that were passed by parliament have not been fully implemented citing the suspended Withholding VAT and the excise duty on Mobile Money transactions which was initially 1% and subsequently reduced to 0.5%. She also noted the 1% tax on Agriculture which meant resistance and failed to performance.
Akol further cited the increasing illicit trade and smuggling especially because of the existence of porous borders through which Uganda loses an estimated Shillings 21 billion.
Akol further mentioned the limited number of equipment to improve border surveillance for example drones, boats and Satellite technologies, mis-declaration of cargo and others.
URA has been allocated 431.26 billion shillings in the coming financial year 2019/2020 up from the current Shillings 331.92 billion budget in the current financial year 2018/2019.
The allocated is an increase in the budget for the tax collection body of Shillings 99.33 billion.
Government has projected a revenue target for the coming financial year 2019/2020 at 20.25 trillion shillings.
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