The Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) has missed its target revenue collection for the 2016/2017 financial year by Sh 50billion.

KRA collected Sh 1.365 trillion short of its Sh 1.415 target.

According to the taxman, however, even though it missed its target, there was still an increase (13.8 per cent) in revenue collection in the 2016/2017 financial year compared to the previous year (sh 1,210 trillion).

KRA attributed the increment to a growth in the consumption taxes (VAT), which has been as a result of enhanced compliance measures. The consumption taxes increased by 25 per cent.

customs also recorded a steady growth of 14.9 per cent up from the average 14.7 per cent recorded in the last four years.

PAYE Taxes Drop

Pay as You Earn (PAYE) taxes dropped by 7.9 per cent down from the 12.5 recorded in the previous financial year. This has been attributed to key among other things; the expanded tax relief granted in January 2017 and the massive layoffs witnessed in the public sector.

According to KRA commissioner general John Njiraini, tax performance for FY2016/2017 conveys optimism for fiscal stabilization and potentially for future business prospects, given the robust performance in many taxes.