This archive report was first published on 4 December 2019.
On December 4, 2019, four betting enthusiasts moved to court to challenge a 20 percent excise duty imposed on all stakes placed by punters.
They argued that the duty, which was introduced under the Finance Act, 2019, leads to double taxation, as punters are already required to pay withholding tax at a rate of 20 percent under the Income Tax Act.
Justice Weldon Korir, however, declined to suspend the law, directing all parties, including the Attorney General, Cabinet Secretary for Finance, and Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA), to file their responses and submissions ahead of the hearing on March 20, 2020.
The four—Eugene Mwanje, Robert Opana, Dennis Kimari, and Moses Muiruri—accused the National Assembly of unilaterally increasing the excise duty on stakes placed by punters from 10 percent to 20 percent without public participation.
They claimed that President Uhuru Kenyatta had refused to assent to the initial Bill, citing his reservations over the capping of interest rates.
According to the four, the amendments contained in the Finance Act 2019 added a paragraph making 'winnings' a taxable income and introduced an excise duty of 20 percent on the stakes placed by punters.
They argued that the winnings are understood to be the gross payout given to the punter by the bookmaker, which includes the stake placed by the punter at the time of betting.
Mr. Mwanje said in an affidavit that with the passage of the Act, a punter who places a bet of Sh100 will only gain Sh28, which he described as 'unreasonable'.
