URA Fails To Hit Anticipated Shs600b Taxes On Gold

Posted by: Kyeyune Andrew Jonathan in Uganda news April 27, 2023

The Energy and Mineral Development minister, Ms Ruth Nankabirwa, recently issued a directive to halt the collection of taxes on gold exports.

This came as a result of the Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) failing to collect taxes to a tune of Shs 600b from the exports.

Ms Nankabirwa, on Tuesday issued a statement to parliament. She indicated arrears dating as far back as July 1, 2021.

“As of December 24, 2022, the total outstanding export levy charged at a rate of 5% was Shs538,062,494,592. The URA sought to collect the outstanding export levy from gold exporters pursuant to the Indemnity Agreements,” the statement partly said.

Earlier this year in February, Ms Nankabirwa signed a statutory instrument. This is the Mining and Minerals (Export Levy on Refined Gold) Regulations, 2023.

The instrument had to guide the collection of arrears of taxes from gold exportation dating back to July 1,2021.

In a turn of events, two weeks after that, She turned right around. She has asked for the statutory instrument to be halted, giving no reasons. The statement is perhaps due to a push-back from the gold exporters.

“URA duly issued demand payment notices to collect the levy. However, some gold refiners made a complaint against the same. They filed a suit in court where an interim order has been issued. In order to provide clarity and further engage the entire industry to enable seamless implementation, the minister wrote to the URA to request that implementation is halted until further guidance provided,” the statement reads.

Sources within the Gold Refiners, Exporters and Dealers of Uganda (GREDAU) confirmed indeed that the lawsuit had been filed.

However though, companies that filed it were no longer part of the association.

“The issue is, there is a group of people who have filed a lawsuit and those are [from] the three companies (names withheld) that don’t want to pay taxes. The others want to pay taxes, some have even already started clearing their arrears and continue to do so,” the source said.

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