GRA to deploy enhanced technology on E-VAT as 5000 entities prepare to onboard

The Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) has assured of enhanced use of technology in the implementation of the electronic Value Added Tax (VAT) system from this year, as over 5000 registered VAT entities have been engaged and are ready to go live.

This falls in line with the move to review the entire VAT payment system to capture all VAT registered taxpayers across board and provide an improved and upgraded platform.

Acting Commissioner General of the GRA, Anthony Kwasi Sarpong, believes that the enhanced system will be capable of providing a simplified VAT accounting system for all taxpayers.

The Commissioner-General was speaking in a virtual engagement with some stakeholders.

“The electronic VAT exercise is ongoing, but as you may be aware, we’re doing a comprehensive review of the entire structure and the Minister for Finance [Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson] is seriously giving it some attention.  So we are hoping to conclude the work soon to seek parliamentary approval. What I can assure you is that the process is getting more enhanced, and modern technology will play a key role in ensuring full accountability at the end of the day.

“We have onboarded a number of taxpayers already, and we shall continue after the directive from the Minister to ensure an equitable tax system”, he said.

Currently, over 3000 taxpayers are onboard and live on the E-VAT system since it was introduced in 2022.

According to the GRA, there is currently an ongoing compliance exercise with the existing tax payers on-board. This is expected to support the assessment of the exercise to ascertain its performance as the implementation enters the final stage.

At the end of 2024, over 5000 taxpayers were engaged across the country and ready for onboarding after a series of talks with the GRA.

The onboarding exercise is still ongoing despite challenges with taxpayer systems and technicalities on the approach for the entire process.

The electronic VAT system is part of the mandated provisions in the Revenue Administration Act, 2016 (Act 915) for the Commissioner General to ensure an equitable and fair tax administration system.

The E-VAT implementation will help to formalise a large number of informal taxpayers, boost domestic tax revenue, improve efficiency in tax administration and support effective tax audits.