By Mulengera Reporters
The Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) has called on taxpayers in the health sector in Arua City to improve their tax compliance by filing their returns for Pay As You Earn (PAYE), Withholding Tax and Income Tax.
The call was made during a taxpayer sensitization engagement aimed at helping players in the health sector better understand their tax obligations, rights and responsibilities. URA says increased compliance across different sectors is critical to strengthening domestic revenue collection and improving Uganda’s tax-to-GDP ratio, which currently stands at about 14 percent, with the national target of raising it to 20 percent.
As part of its efforts to achieve this target, URA is engaging different sectors across the country through taxpayer education and sensitization programmes. The engagements are intended to address challenges affecting compliance while providing taxpayers with information on how to meet their obligations.
During the engagement in Arua City, URA also highlighted concerns surrounding employees who have more than one source of employment. It was noted that some health workers already earn salaries from their primary employers while also providing services to secondary employers.
URA therefore urged secondary employers to apply the appropriate tax rates when making payments to individuals who have another source of employment. This, the authority explained, helps ensure that the correct amount of tax is deducted and remitted in accordance with the law.
The authority also identified fear of being overtaxed as one of the reasons some taxpayers fail to comply. Some business owners reportedly hesitate to disclose complete information about their businesses because they believe doing so could result in higher tax assessments.
However, Muzamil Aluma, Supervisor of Tax Education at URA, encouraged taxpayers in the medical services sector to keep accurate and proper records of their business transactions.
Aluma explained that maintaining reliable financial records can help taxpayers and the authority determine the correct amount of tax payable. Proper documentation can also support taxpayers in understanding their business performance and meeting filing requirements on time.
URA has reaffirmed its commitment to strengthening tax administration through continued stakeholder engagement, taxpayer education and extensive sensitization.
The authority says cooperation between taxpayers and URA remains essential in building a compliant tax-paying culture and increasing domestic revenue needed to support Uganda’s development programmes. (For comments on this story, get back to us on 0705579994 [WhatsApp line], 0779411734 & 041 4674611 or email us at mulengeranews@gmail.com).
