This archive report was first published on 4 November 2019.
On November 4, 2019, the Treasury introduced new rules to guide alternative dispute resolution (ADR) for aggrieved taxpayers, locking out notorious evaders and capping dispute timelines.
The Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) had earlier stated that it had been unable to collect Sh283 billion from big taxpayers, thanks to a slow-paced Judiciary and failure by the Treasury to put in place the tax appeals tribunal.
Under the new regulations, specific legally backed timelines are introduced to prevent disputes from becoming long-drawn-out for taxpayers.
According to the draft, 'ADR shall commence upon written communication by the appointed facilitator that a matter is eligible for ADR and shall be concluded within ninety (90) days thereof.'
However, 'a dispute shall not be eligible for Alternative Dispute Resolution where it is in the public interest to have judicial clarification of the issue (and) the parties have not complied with the provisions of the relevant tax legislation and there is evidence that the non-compliance is consistent or deliberate.'
KRA Deputy Commissioner Tax Dispute Resolution head Rispah Simiyu stated that the aim is to firmly anchor dispute resolution in the law by forming subsidiary legislation to be read together with the Tax Procedures Act No 29 of 2015.
She added that the ADR regulations will capture most of the areas highlighted in the framework and shed light on the procedures relating to the ADR process.
