46TH CIAT GENERAL ASSEMBLY, USE OF ICT TO IMPROVE PERFORMANCE AND FACILITATE TAX COMPLIANCE IN KENYA BY J K NJIRAINI, MBS COMMISSIONER GENERAL KENYA REVENUE AUTHORITY 46TH CIAT GENERAL ASSEMBLY, SANTIAGO, CHILE 23RD APRIL 2012

PRELIMINARIES ICT identified as national growth driver Vision 2030 blueprint – develop BPO capacity Improve investment competitiveness through easier tax processes Significant internet uptake – 44% at Dec 2011 Mobile penetration – 71% at Dec 2011 Mobile coverage - 89% of population, 35% of land mass

PRELIMINARIES (contd) Mobile money payment – 70% of mobile subscriptions Mobile money transactions - average USD 680m per month Phenomenal growth – 55% for last quarter of 2011 Wide range of transactions covered – including airline & hotel bookings, utility & social security payments

OPPORTUNITIES Facilitation of Small Enterprise & Individual Compliance Kenya operates Small Business turnover based tax founded on simplified declarations Mobile platform enables simplified tax filing, confirmation For individuals - document applications, status queries Mobile payment – for sums below USD 1,200 Key advantages – easier processes, de-congestion

OPPORTUNITIES Monitoring of Electronic Tax Register (ETR) usage ETR introduced in 2004 Key challenge faced – policing usage Successfully pilot tested remote GSM enabled sales data transmission To be integrated into planned e-invoicing system Facility to track usage, disconnections Risk based interventions

OPPORTUNITIES (contd) Geo-mapping technology to facilitate property taxation Key challenge – ease of mapping properties to owners, mail and physical addresses (absence of street mapping, incomplete/outdated ownership data, insufficient property use data) Use of geo-mapping combined with data from utility providers helps in identification of owners/ tenants and current contacts Results complimented through field evidence on property utilisation Highly successful pilot case forming basis for wider national intervention