URA tasked to review its policies to allow taxpayers to clear taxes willingly

Even with the increased tax education and reduction in corruption cases at Uganda Revenue Authority (URA), some taxpayers have tasked the tax body to review its policies to allow them to pay willingly.

The remarks were made during URA e-bomba ya business summit on the topic: "Alternative dispute resolution: The role in domestic revenue mobilisation."

Joseph Okuja, the director tax and regulatory services at Libra Associates and Consultants said the tax body risks losing about shs1 trillion in legal battles, which can be avoided.

"It is very important that taxpayers keep proper records. Besides keeping all records that relate to its transactions, a business has to ensure that records are properly dated in order to understand which ones relate to what period," he said.

The director of economics affairs at the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, Moses Kaggwa asked Ugandans not to look at paying tax as a punishment but as a contribution that they are supposed to make.

"We need to be independent from endless borrowing and this cannot happen if we don't normalise clearing taxes. A tax should be a contribution not a burden. Unless we look at it that way, we shall continue borrowing. Therefore, URA should provide incentives to the people in order to encourage them to invest and pay taxes," said Kaggwa.

The president of Uganda Law Society (ULS)) Pheona Wall saidURA needs to create a system that is trusted by taxpayers.

"This is to ensure that taxpayers give correct information about their business. We need to be very strategic, what value doesn’t URA get by having a more human face? Can we start by trusting our system because when you go to South Africa, Kenya and Rwanda, they don’t have unreasonable requirements," she said.

Patience Tumusiime Rubagumya, the commissioner for legal services & board affairs at URA called for alternative dispute resolution to improve on domestic revenue mobilisation.