Unlike mobile money, where transactions above ¢1000 attract the same charge of ¢10, the yet-to-be-introduced Electronic Transfer Levy (E-Levy) has no limit.
According to a Principal Revenue Officer and Head of the Project Management Unit, the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), the full value of the amount transferred electronically will be implemented on the amount.
Isaac Kobina Amoako clarified this when speaking on JoyNews’ The Probe on Sunday.
“There will not be any cap. Unlike the telcos, where there is a cap on the charges for the E-levy, there is no cap, so the full value after the daily threshold [of ¢100] has been deducted is the tax applied.
Following the passage of the E-Levy, Mr Amoako opined that the Authority has been readying itself to roll out the new tax policy effective, My 1.
Currently, he said GRA is training and piloting the system to ensure a smooth running of the Levy, which is just three weeks away.
“We have a system ready that we’ve asked all the charging entities to connect to. So the system is ready, and we are testing towards May 1, so by then, we should be ready to go,” he stated.
E-levy was first mentioned by the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, when he was presenting the 2022 budget in November 2021.
He explained that the “innovative” tax will broaden the government’s revenue generation basket.
However, the tax policy generated a lot of controversy in Parliaments and amongst the citizenry.
As the Majority Caucus said it will propel Ghana’s development, economists and Minority in Parliament said the Levy will only intensify the hardships of average Ghanaians.
But after nearly three months of back and forth, including fisticuffs among Parliamentarians, the E-Levy Bill was passed by the Majority-sided Parliament on Tuesday, March 29.
The Levy was passed at a reduced rate of 1.5% from the initial 1.75% amid a Minority walkout.
In a related story, the Head of Compliance, Domestic Tax Revenue Unit at the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) has made some clarifications about the yet-to-be-implemented Electronic Transfer Levy (E-Levy).According to Victor Yao Akogo, electronic transfers between accounts owned by the same person will not be subjected to the 1.5 per cent tax of the newly introduced levy.
He, however, said there is a condition to this exemption.
Speaking on JoyNews’ The Probe on Sunday, Mr Akogo said citizens must ensure all their accounts have been linked to the National Identification Card (GhanaCard).
“We have a unique identifier which is the GhanaCard and that is what we are going to use. There are some people who have used their passport to register their account, we are saying that for you to qualify for the exemption.
“So there is the need to let your GhanaCard be linked to all your accounts so that it will be the unique identifier of you everywhere so that you can enjoy the exemption,” he stated.
The Ghana Revenue Authority is the Ghana administration charged with the task of assessing, collecting and accounting for tax revenue in Ghana.
To mobilise revenue for national development in a transparent, fair, effective and efficient manner.
