Any Ghanaian who is able to send more than GHS100 day via mobile money platforms is not poor, the Minister of Communications and Digitalisation, Mrs Ursula Owusu-Ekuful, has said.
Once the 2022 budget is approved, all electronic transactions in Ghana will attract an Electronic Transaction Levy or E-Levy, as part of moves by the government to shore up its revenue mobilisation.
Finance Minister, Mr Ken Ofori-Atta, who made the announcement when he presented the 2022 budget to parliament on Wednesday, 17 November 2021, explained that the upsurge in the use of e-payment platforms as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, has been an impetus for the introduction of the levy.
As a result, Ghana recorded a total amount of GHS500 billion from e-transactions in 2020 compared with GHS78 billion in 2016.
He said: “It is becoming clear there exists an enormous potential to increase tax revenues by bringing into the tax bracket, transactions that could be best defined as being undertaken in the informal economy.”
He noted, therefore, that the government is charging an applicable rate of 1.75% on all electronic transactions covering mobile money payments, bank transfers, merchant payments and inward remittances, which shall be borne by the sender except inward remittances, which will be borne by the recipient.
“Mr Speaker, to safeguard efforts being made to enhance financial inclusion and protect the vulnerable, all transactions that add up to GHS100 or less per day, which is approximately GHS3,000 per month, will be exempt from this levy,” he stated.
Discussion about this post