Ghana Revenue Authority will collect e-levy for gov’t – Finance Ministry

The Finance Ministry says all the processes for the collection of the proposed Electronic levy (e-levy) on mobile money transactions, inward remittances and ATM withdrawals will be done by the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA).

The Ministry, in a statement, said, “GRA will manage all discussions to ensure full deployment of their current platforms and resources for the collection of the e-levy.”

This follows discussions that government should drop the allocation of GH¢241,933,000 for the e-transaction levy services to an alleged private company.

The statement said, “the Ministry of Finance wishes to state that these allegations are all untrue.”

Quoting an earlier statement made by the Finance Minister, Mr Ken Ofori-Atta, on the subject, it noted that, “we do have an understanding with the Ghana Revenue Authority, which uses up to 3 percent of the money it raises for ensuring that they can make such collections.”

“The GH¢241 million is, therefore, a reserve that is intended to be put aside to facilitate GRA’s collection of these resources,” the statement said.”

“Additionally, typically when we have new tax measures, there is the issue of refunds, and we usually make some compensation for that, sometimes 6 percent or so of the value to ensure that if those refunds come, we are able to pay for them.”

“So, in essence, this really will be to back up GRA in a way to ensure that all the problems that people envisage and the difficulties other countries have had will be mitigated in Ghana, so we
should be in readiness to support that,” the statement added.

The issue about the GH¢241 million set aside for revenue assurance for the electronic levy deductions was first raised last week by the Member of Parliament for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa.

According to Ablakwa, the allocation is needless and does not pass any test of accountability.

“We take the view that over the last four years, the Ghanaian taxpayer has been burdened with billions of cedis in the name of revenue assurance contracts and arrangements and so you can speak to the KelniGVG and the rest, and they are very costly…. We should by now be having very adequate and reliable systems