The Kenya Revenue Authority has defended its plan to move the annual tax filing deadline from June 30 to April 30, citing pre-populated returns and recent growth in voluntary compliance. The proposal was first advanced by the National Treasury in the 2026 Finance Bill.
Speaking at an NTV TaxSymposium on May 19, KRA Commissioner for the Micro and Small Taxpayers Department Obell argued that the current mid-year deadline no longer makes sense. He noted that many taxpayers, especially salaried employees filing nil returns, now have little reason to wait until June because returns are pre-filled.
Obell highlighted recent results, saying 97,000 new taxpayers who had never paid tax before contributed Ksh7.8 billion in just four months. He said this voluntary compliance shows earlier deadlines can succeed when supported by better systems.
To prepare for the change, KRA plans to send pre-filled tax breakdowns to all registered taxpayers from January 1, 2027, using data from eTIMS invoices and other sources. The authority also pointed to an upgraded iTax dashboard that gives businesses real-time visibility into their records.
Businesses and some researchers have raised concerns about added compliance burdens under the existing framework. KRA maintains the shift aims to reduce errors and penalties rather than trap taxpayers, and noted that countries such as Rwanda already require filings by early March.
