The taxman in Kenya has been let loose and starting July 2021, Kenya will start taxing any form of payment that is received in form of goodwill and exposure.
In the move aimed at netting interns and other people who are working for free and being paid in form of exposure, National Treasury CS Ukur Yatani said that there was a lot of missed tax opportunity because young people were receiving a lot of exposure and not paying tax on it, denying the government the much needed revenue.
“We know that half of all young people in Kenya are paid in form of exposure and these have not been paying taxes. We need to net this income and get them to effectively contribute to nation building. KRA will be working on ways to effect this.”
The CS also said that the unpaid interns who sell mandazi at work place must also pay their fair share of tax, arguing that not paying taxes on that was a form of tax evasion. “If you sell ten mandazi, you need to be aware that 3 of them belong to the government, and it is up to you to either send us the money or drop the three mandazi at Treasury before the close of business. You know the government is a major consumer of mandazi.”
