KRA is onto tax-evading landlords with new technology.
Kenya Revenue Authority is leaving no stone unturned through the latest mapping technology. Technology will soon be making it impossible to evade taxes as the KRA will be implementing a block management system that will use a geographic information system (GIS) to map outbuildings in various residences.
As houses and apartments are being built every day, some landlords have been making a fortune but some are tax-compliant while others are not. The new system will be able to monitor the upcoming builds and estates that are not in its tax net.
As reported by Business Daily KRA Commissioner for Legal Services and Board Co-ordination Paul Matuku said in an interview:
“We are investing in block management and geo-mapping systems to map out all these urban areas like Nairobi and Mombasa and get to know where these landlords are and who is paying what tax and who is not paying what tax,”
He added:
“It is work in progress in that area (rental income tax) and we will bring all of them (landlords) under tax net.”
The KRA currently relies on its capability to feed financial transactions of individuals and businesses from third parties into its Data Warehouse and Business Intelligence (DWBI) platform to catch tax-evading property owners.