iTax System kra staff] [Photo/kachwanya.com]With the government expenditure growing every year, Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) tax revenue targets will always go up considering that the government relies on the same to finance at least 70 percent of the expenditure.For the past years, the appetite for revenue collection has increased where we have seen more KRA audit cases strategically planned for the taxpayers who are considered to have a high risk of non-compliance either through tax avoidance, evasion or unintentional non-compliance due to misinterpretation and complexity of dynamic changes in tax laws.When significant non-compliance is identified in a company, sector-wise non-compliance is also evaluated which means more audit cases in that particular sector. It is therefore eminent that the nine cannons of taxation need to be considered when coming up with tax policies to enhance compliance.This calls for productive consultation between, the policymakers and the stakeholders. Currently, KRA has focused on collecting more taxes by embracing information technology. The emphasis is on keeping the cost of collecting taxes as low as possible and minimising any leakage in the tax system.Having taken care of customs automation, KRA realized that a similar system could yield more domestic taxes and minimise leakages. This called for the implementation of an Integrated Tax Management System currently referred to as an iTax system. Though the iTax system has its own challenges, overall it has yielded more revenue and minimised tax leakages.More automation programs are expected in future. When all taxes are automated, regular updates and maintenance are imminent. There is also the need to focus on automating the collection of taxes in various sectors if KRA is to keep pace with the ever-growing government expenditure.

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