Kenya Revenue Authority will now expand her workforce from January a move that aims at increasing revenues to meet Treasury targets.
The country is currently struggling financially with the taxman failing to meet obligations, a move that has seen Treasury implement cuts in ministries.
Budget and Appropriation Committee has okayed Sh2 billion for KRA which will facilitate the employment of more staff to work more as spies.
The new team which will represent 12 percent of KRA's total staff, will now gather intelligence on people snubbing taxes.
The team is expected to start working as soon as from January next year. They will solve a number of tax compliance-related cases.
“Increase Sh2 billion to the Kenya Revenue Authority budget for recruitment of an additional 1,000 officers countrywide in order to generate an additional Sh50 billion in revenue in support of the achievement of this year’s revenue targets,” said the National Assembly committee as quoted by Bussiness Daily.
The new KRA officials will further step up the analyzing of companies’ financial dealings, especially firms and organizations doing business with the national government and counties, to unearth tax evaders by matching their payments and income declared to the authority.
A 1,000 new additional staff is equivalent to 12.5 percent of KRA’s total workforce that stands at 8,000 currently.
Once hired, they are expected to collect at least a fifth of the unremitted billions between January and June.