URA posted 10% revenue growth in 2022/23 financial year

Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) has announced an impressive 16.4% growth in revenue collection for the financial year 2022-23, surpassing the target set for the year. Despite the increase in revenue growth compared to the previous financial year, the collection still fell short of the target by approximately 136 billion Ugandan shillings. Ibrahim Bbossa, the Assistant Commissioner and Corporate Affairs at URA, highlighted the key factors contributing to this performance in an interview with CNBC Africa. Bbossa noted that the consistent economic growth of about 5.3% and the cooperation of patriotic taxpayers played a significant role in achieving this milestone. The direct domestic taxes collected exceeded the target, while non-tax revenues fell short, mainly due to informality in the economy and underreporting by some taxpayers. Bbossa mentioned that issues like the informality of a large part of the economy, underreporting, tax evasion, and production and consumption volumes affected revenue collection. For instance, low sugar production impacted local excise duty collections, and consumer responses to fuel price hikes influenced consumption patterns. Despite these challenges, URA has put measures in place to enhance revenue collection consistency and manage revenue flow effectively. Discussing the strategies deployed by URA in the previous financial year, Bbossa outlined administrative measures such as extending working hours, enhancing areas management, promoting voluntary compliance through sensitization, deploying mobile tax offices, resolving disputes through alternative dispute resolution, improving audits and assessments, leveraging data for taxpayer profiling, conducting effective tax investigations, and implementing a new performance management system to increase accountability. When asked about the impact of disputes within the mining sector following the implementation of new gold tax reforms, Bbossa highlighted the importance of resolving such issues quickly to avoid hindrances to revenue collection. Despite challenges, URA remains committed to maximizing revenue collection and ensuring transparency and accountability in tax administration.