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The Head of Legal Affairs for the National Democratic Congress NDC, Godwin Edudzi Tamakloe, has said the government has imposed forty (40) new taxes on Ghanaians.
He made the claim on March 25, 2024, during a discussion on TV3’s New Day Show on Bawumia’s comment on taxation, revenue and tax amnesty.
Claim: “The only reason why Dr. Bawumia believes that he can, as it were, gaslight Ghanaians by deceiving them, by lying to them is that he knows that as the Chairman of the Economic Management Team, under his watch, over 40 new taxes have been placed on Ghanaians.”
Verdict: False
Explanation:
This claim was made by a communicator of the NDC including its on February 10, 2024.
Earlier on January 25, 2024, Ayisha Alhassan, an NDC communicator also claimed that over 50 new taxes have been introduced although the NPP government promised to move Ghana’s economy from taxation to production.
“Since the inception of this government from 2017 till date, they’ve imposed over 50 new taxes. The government promised to move us from taxation to production,” she said on TV3’s New Day Show.
In February, the Director of Communication of the NDC, Sammy Gyamfi, also falsely claimed the NPP has introduced over 40 new taxes.
Fact-Check Ghana previously worked on this claim and found it to be false.
In that report, Fact-Check Ghana presented a breakdown of all the taxes introduced and reviewed by the Akufo-Addo/Bawumia government. The government has introduced not more than 11 new taxes.
A list of new taxes introduced by the Akufo-Addo/Bawumia government
- Covid Levy – 2021
In 2021, the government introduced a 1% COVID-19 Health Levy on the supply of goods or services made in the country other than exempt goods or services as well as on the import of goods or services other than exempt imports to support COVID-19 expenditures.
- Electronic Levy – 2022
In May 2022, the government introduced a tax of 1.5% on electronic transactions but later reduced it to 1% in March 2023.
- 5% Financial Sector Clean-up Levy – 2021
The government imposed a 5% levy on the pre-tax profit of banks, known as the Financial Sector Clean-Up levy. The government said it was a temporary measure to generate revenue to help settle outstanding commitments related to cleaning up the financial sector in 2017. The levy is expected to be reviewed this year, 2024.
- Energy Sector Cleanup Levy – 2021
The government introduced a 20 pesewas energy sector recovery levy on every litre of diesel or petrol.
- Sanitation and Pollution Levy – 2021
The government introduced the Sanitation and Pollution levy on Petrol and diesel at a charge of GH¢ 0.10 per litre.
- Growth and Sustainability Levy – 2023
Ghana’s Parliament on Friday 31st March 2023, passed three (3) tax bills which are expected to rack up about GH¢4 billion annually (Income Tax Amendment Bill, The Excise Duty Amendment Bill, and the Growth and Sustainability Amendment Bill.
The Growth and Sustainability Levy is a new tax which came to replace The National Fiscal Stabilization Levy Act 2013 (Act 862) which has already been repealed. The levy is calculated as a percentage of the business’s Profit Before Tax (PBT) or Gross Production, regardless of any existing concessions or agreements.
- Withholding tax on the realisation of assets and liabilities- 2023
This is a 3% and 10% tax withheld by residents and non-residents respectively when making payment for considerations regarding assets and liabilities realised.
- Betting Tax 2023
This is a 10% tax on all lottery and sports betting winnings.
- VAT Flat Rate Scheme (VFRS) introduced for retailers and wholesalers under VAT, NHIL, GETFUND – 2017. In 2017, a 3% VAT Flat Rate Scheme was introduced for retailers and wholesalers.
- Emissions Levy Act, 2023 (Act 1112)
The Emissions Levy Act, 2023 (Act 1112) has been enacted to impose charges on carbon dioxide equivalent emissions originating from specific sectors and emissions produced by internal combustion engine vehicles (See here for the rates payable).
It is worth noting that the NPP government led by President Akufo-Addo has also reviewed upwards some tax rates. Others have been reviewed downward as well.
While some politicians argue that an upward adjustment in current taxes increases the tax burden on Ghanaians, tax experts contend that categorising an increased existing tax as a new tax is incorrect.
In conclusion, even with the addition of the increased taxes to the tax list, the new taxes introduced by the Akufo-Addo/Bawumia government do not exceed 40. This makes claims that the NPP has introduced over 40 new taxes false.
