Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) has surpassed its revenue collection target for the fiscal year 2022/2023, reporting an excess of Shs57 billion in revenue. This accomplishment is notable considering the challenges posed by COVID-19 lockdowns and a sluggish economy in recent years.
John R. Musinguzi, URA’s Commissioner General, announced during an August 23 press conference in Kampala that this achievement reflects the citizens’ strong sense of patriotism and loyalty. Musinguzi emphasized that taxpayers’ contributions have enabled the government to provide crucial social services to the people.
In the fiscal year 2022/23, URA had aimed for a net revenue collection of Shs25.2 trillion, but it managed to collect Shs25.2 trillion, surpassing the target and achieving a performance rate of 100.23%.
This year’s revenue growth of 16.40%, equivalent to Shs3.55 trillion, compared to the previous fiscal year, is attributed to a stable and resilient economy, enhanced administrative strategies, and cooperative taxpayers.
Domestic Tax Performance
Direct domestic tax collections exceeded the target, yielding a surplus of Shs724.62 billion. Non-tax revenue, which includes stamp duty and embossing fees, also generated a surplus of Shs65.81 billion. However, indirect domestic taxes fell short of the target by Shs553.54 billion.
On the international front, total tax collections amounted to Shs9.33 trillion, slightly below the Shs9.46 trillion target. The revenue growth of Shs892.47 billion (10.68%) from the previous fiscal year was notable, but collections were still Shs136.05 billion lower than the target.
While import duty, temporary road licenses, and export levies exceeded expectations, several tax categories experienced shortfalls. These included VAT on imports, petroleum duty, excise duty, withholding tax, infrastructure levy, and surcharge.
Factors Behind Good Performance
Musinguzi attributed the positive performance to sustained economic growth of 5.3%, leading to job creation and increased tax revenue. Administrative improvements also played a role, including extended operational hours, better arrears management, taxpayer engagement, mobile offices, awareness campaigns, dispute resolution, compliance initiatives, audits, and the integration of technology.
Increase in Taxpayer Registration
In the fiscal year 2022/23, the number of registered taxpayers rose by 882,286, marking a growth of 33.70%. The total number of taxpayers reached 3,500,294, with 194,143 being non-individuals and 3,306,151 being individual taxpayers. This growth is attributed to the Tax Registration Expansion Program (TREP), which utilized fieldwork and data-driven registrations.
Enforcement and Arrears Management
Throughout the year, customs enforcement operations across Uganda resulted in the recovery of Shs132.77 billion through 14,187 seizures. These recoveries stemmed from various offenses like under-declaration, misdescription, undervaluation, smuggling, and more. Additionally, arrears management efforts led to recoveries totaling Shs1,991.39 billion, with government commitments fulfilled at Shs713.47 billion.
Outlook for FY2022/23
For the fiscal year 2023/24, URA has set a revenue collection target of Shs29.2 trillion, a significant increase of Shs4 trillion from the previous year. Musinguzi expressed optimism in achieving this target due to an expected economic growth rate of 5.5-6.0% and the revenue growth demonstrated in the prior year.
To meet this goal, URA plans to enhance tax administration and compliance, engage stakeholders, provide extensive education, improve staff accountability, implement digital stamps and EFRIS, employ data analytics and AI for risk management, utilize alternative dispute resolution, enhance staff capacity, strengthen investigations, and effectively manage borders.
