Keroche Breweries to Pay Half a Billion to Lift Urgency Notice by KRA

The High Court has ordered Keroche Breweries Limited to pay Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) KShs500Million for the Authority to lift the agency notice issued to the company’s banks. The notice was to enable KRA to recover Kshs 9.1 Billion following the orders given by the Tax Appeal Tribunal (TAT) on 9th March 2020.

The Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) was allowed to collect over Sh9 billion from Keroche Breweries after winning six appeal cases filed by the firm. In the three appeals before Tax Appeals Tribunal. The contention was in the manufacturing process of Vienna Ice Brand of Vodka. Which the brewer argued that  Ice brand of Vodka was produced by diluting Crescent Vodka, a process that did not amount to manufacturing.

Later on, Friday  13th, Keroche Industries through the court secured temporary orders stopping the taxman from recovering Sh9.1 billion in taxes from its accounts. The court certified Keroche’s application as urgent and the brewery was issued with a temporary stay of the tribunals’ order pending the hearing and determination of the application for stay.

The court further ordered that Keroche’s application for a stay mentioned yesterday on 16th March 2020. During the mention, KRA requested to be heard in opposition to the application for stay.

The  court further made the following orders; 

1. There shall be a stay of further enforcement of any collection of taxes ensuing from the decision of TAT in Tax Appeal Tribunal, Tax Appeal Number 137 of 2017as consolidated with TAT number 138 and 139 of 2017 and Tax Appeal number 214 of 2015 as consolidated with TAT number 38 of 2017 and 97 of 2017

4. The stay shall be on condition that the appellant pays KShs500Million within the next 30days in default of which the order of stay shall lapse without any further order.
5. The TAT was directed to furnish the typed copies of the judgement to all the parties within 48 hours and typed proceedings within seven (7) days from the day of the court hearing.
6. The appellant was also ordered to file and serve its record of appeal within 30 days from the date of the court hearing.
7. The order shall apply to Tax APPEAL NO. E012 of 2020 and tax appeal number EO13 of 2020.