More companies have complied with the Uganda Revenue Authority’s move to have all factories install digital tax stamps, the tax body has said.
The government last year gazetted Digital Tax Stamps to start being operational as one of the ways in which it seeks to fight illicit trade and counterfeit.
However, according to Ian Rumanyika, the Public and Corporate Affairs Manager at URA, more companies have embraced the stamps and are installed on their goods.
“We are progressing well and we have seen more companies comply. Checking the market you can see most goods with digital stamps and this gives assurance to the consumer,” Rumanyika said.
Since the implementation of the digital tax stamps, manufacturers have protested against the move in various forums but according to Rumanyika, there is considerable progress registered as many companies have understood the rationale for embracing the stamps.
“Enforcement and sensitization have been ongoing but there is a penalty for a company that is found not to be complying,” he warned.
According to documents from the tax body, 17 factories have automated their production lines in regards to the digital tax stamps and these include Crown Beverages Limited, Mukwano Industries, Nile Breweries Limited, Uganda Breweries Limited, and Century Bottling Company among others.
A total of 35 other companies have installed these digital tax stamps manually whereas 12 importing companies have also heeded to the call, bringing the number to 64.
Digital tax stamps are physical paper stamps with security features and codes that are applied to goods or their packaging to enable manufacturers and traders to track a product’s movement.
Uganda Revenue Authority recently said the stamps will help in fighting fake goods.
The move by the Uganda Revenue Authority will see manufacturers of sodas, beers, bottled water, cigarettes, wines, and spirits place digital tax stamps on their products.
The stamps, placed on top of the product are applied from an in-house computer whose servers are accessible to both URA and the manufacturers.
URA insists that this is aimed at closing a four trillion shillings gap that is lost in under-declarations.
Uganda is the third country after Kenya and Tanzania to implement digital tax stamps.
