KRA Steps Up Surveillance On Tax Cheats And Now Spying On Bank Accounts

The Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) is now spying on bank accounts in an attempt to nab tax cheats. A move which is raising eyebrows over privacy breaches.

The taxman is said to be monitoring the cash flow of cash in bank accounts against tax remitted. While bankers have denied sharing clients’ data with KRA in the absence of court orders, lawyers claim it is the only way KRA can get the details.

The taxman has not denied acquiring data, KRA has insisted they have the rights to data they need as the Tax Procedures Act compels, the act requires third parties to share information with the taxman.

KRA commissioner for Domestic Taxes Elizabeth Meyo has insisted  that data obtained is treated with strict confidentiality and only for the purpose for which it was sought.

From this operation, the taxman has already identified rich individuals and companies that owe it an estimated Sh250 billion with this development seeing KRA detectives issue agency notices, which have led to the freezing of bank accounts and the order to remit tax directly to the authority from clients’ accounts.

KRA is in a race with time to beat the target of collected revenue after the taxman failed a couple of times already.