EAC member states vows to harmonise taxes to deepen common market
What you need to know:
- In the communique signed by Commissioner Generals from Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda by Commissioner Generals from respective countries agreed that the EAC member states should harmonize their taxation system to facilitate trade and enhance compliance they agreed to develop a common customs management system to replace the current independent systems at individual state level.
Nairobi. Revenue authorities from the East African Community (EAC) members on Friday vowed to push for the harmonization of their domestic taxes in order to deepen their common market.
The revenue authorities said in Nairobi that to effectively facilitate trade and enhance compliance they agreed to develop a common customs management system to replace the current independent systems at individual state level.
"To further deepen EAC common market revenue authorities resolved to more boldly champion domestic tax harmonization with a view to removing internal distortions to the free movement of labour and investment," according to a joint communique issued after the closure of the 45th East African Revenue Authorities Commissioners General and the Regional Joint Coordination Committee meeting.
The communique was signed by the commissioner generals of revenue authorities of Tanzania, Rwanda, Kenya, Uganda and Burundi.
The regional revenue chiefs also pledged to further enhance capacity to combat cargo undervaluation by speedily implementing the electronic EAC customs valuation systems that enable cargo value benchmarking of various goods based on valuation data gleaned from national customs declaration systems.
The EAC customs administrators also said that they shall coordinate research aimed at enhancing their common cargo valuation system.
