In 2009, Siraje Hassan Kajura filed a suit that turned out to be a game changer in tax administration, as the Ugandan public had for long held divided views on whether or not retrenchment packages or...
...terminal benefits are taxable. The subject drew URA and Mr. Kajura and 160 other former employees of the defunct Dairy Corporation Ltd in a legal duel, after their retrenchment in August 2006....
...The Privatization Unit of @mofpedU (Ministry of Finance Planning and Economic Development) had subjected the retrenchment packages of these senior citizens to Pay As You Earn, and remitted to URA tax of Ugx. 1,130,778314.
...Mr. Kajura challenged the taxation of their benefits in the High Court, lodging civil suit no. 117 of 2009, arguing that, the packages paid to them were not employment income but rather a ‘thank you’, following the privatization of the Diary Corporation...
...In his judgment, Justice V.F Musoke Kibuuka ruled in favour of Mr. Kajura declaring that, URA unlawfully charged PAYE on the terminal benefits, thereby ordering refund of the taxed amount, with interests, general damages and costs...
...Being dissatisfied with the High Court decision, URA appealed to the Court of Appeal, under civil appeal no. 26 of 2013, arguing that, retrenchment packages and terminal benefits generally, are taxable under the Income Tax Act...
...Not satisfied, URA further appealed in the Supreme Court in 2015, contending that the items in the package paid to Mr. Kajura and his colleagues were indeed taxable and qualified as compensation under the Income Tax Act...
...The Supreme Court agreed with URA, in its decision handed down on 20th December 2017, that terminal benefits or retrenchment packages are indeed taxable and URA was right in taxing them...
...Feeling aggrieved by the Supreme Court ruling, Mr. Kajura filed an application for review in 2018, under civil application no. 26 of 2018, asking the very Court to revisit and ‘correct’ its judgment, alleging the Supreme Court was in error...
...in deciding as it did in 2017. On 10th September 2020, the Supreme Court dismissed Mr. Kajura’s case, with costs, terming it a disguised appeal to the very Court that had ruled on the same matter already, in 2017...
...“The value of this decision is unquantifiable, in monetary terms. This decision means the @GovUganda would've been exposed to the risk of revenue loss, had the case gone against URA...
...The Government would have to refund all terminal benefits that have ever been taxed by URA from retirees/ retrenchees,” said URA’s Assistant Commissioner Litigation, Mr. George Okello.
Between April to June, 2020, URA registered 17 Court wins, out of 26 cases concluded. Out of these, 5 were settled, while 4 were lost, some of which have been appealed to higher courts.
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Coming to you live from Ssendaula Auditorium at the #URATower, the Commissioner General of URA - John R Musinguzi (@URA_CG) is unpacking the Half-Year Revenue Performance for the FY 2022/23.
In this thread are key highlights of his #URAPressBrief23 report.
#URAEnforcementAlert🌍
Intelligence gathering that targets consolidation centers is a tried & tested tactic for curtailing tax evaders, premised on that Busitema and Malaba Enforcement joined efforts to carry out a focused Op. targeting a consolidation centre at Sikuda, Busia!/1
As opposed to piecemeal interceptions,the saboteurs were led to believe that they could move their loot to the consolidation centre unabated,allowing them to move in bigger quantities. While at it intelligence was deployed to clandestinely monitor their moves waiting to strike./2
When the phone call from the deep throat source came through, the troops moved onto the target at once, secured all goods of interest.
Loads of garments were swiftly loaded onto a truck for transportation to the tactical base for further management./3
A Tarrif is a system of duties imposed by the government upon goods imported/exported. A customs tariff therefore shows how much duty is payable on imported or exported goods.#Customs101
𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙞𝙨 𝘾𝙪𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙢𝙨 𝘾𝙡𝙖𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙛𝙞𝙘𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣?
Customs Classification refers to a particular category in the Nomenclature in which a product is classified or categorized. #Customs101
The importance of using a common nomenclature (code-naming) to classify goods in international trade helps in;
a) Levying of Customs duties
b) Collection of statistics
c) Determining the origin of goods
d) Monitoring controlled goods
e) Enforcing trade barriers #Customs101
Uganda has been consistently attracting the highest foreign direct investment (FDI) in East Africa by attracting between $250 – 300 million in FDI annually between 2010 and 2016 largely due to its stable and consistent macro-economic policies. #DubaiExpo2020 1/5
Other reasons for Uganda's consistence in attracting the highest foreign direct investment (FDI) in East Africa include the liberalized business environment, proximity as a logistics hub within the Great Lakes region and increased regional trade. #DubaiExpo2020 2/5
Most foreign direct investment (FDI) into Uganda has been directed towards telecommunications, real estate, banking, insurance, petroleum sector, energy, mining and agro-export sectors. #DubaiExpo2020 3/5
A Customs offence is any breach/attempted breach of the statutory/regulatory provisions which are provided for in the East African Community Customs Management Act (EACCMA). #Customs101
Qn-1: Is any person allowed access to a warehouse?
Ans: No person is allowed access to a warehouse without proper authorization.
Qn-2: Is deficiency or surplus in cargo or stores an offence?
Yes, both Deficiency & Surplus in cargo are an offence.
Deficiency in cargo is when the goods are reported on arrival as remaining on board and upon inspection, the goods are not on board. #URAweeklyFAQs #Customs101
The mobile Non-Intrusive Inspection scanner confirmed something unusual tucked away in a trio of 20 ft containers which crossed from South Sudan into Uganda carrying logs of timber. Timber was the declared item in transit but the scanner seemed to disagree.