The National Taxpayers Association (NTA) has called upon the Treasury to design a ‘Wealth Tax’ that could net over KSh 100 billion annually, unburdening low-income earners.
- The lobby group has proposed that individuals with a net worth more than US$100 million should be charged 5% while those ranked between US$3 million to US$100 million will be charged 3%.
- NTA estimates that there are only 16 individuals with a networth of more than US$100 million and the government could garner over KSh 20 billion in revenue.
- Individuals with a net worth between US$ 3 million to US$100 million will see the Treasury collection grow by KSh 58 billion.
“Implementing an annual wealth tax, rather than a one-off measure, could provide a sustainable source of funding for these initiatives. It would also serve as an ongoing mechanism to address wealth concentration, which the income inequality data suggests is a persistent issue in Kenya,” NTA said in the report.
Individuals with a net worth above US$1 million to US$3 million formed the bulk of NTA’s assessment, numbering 5,700. The lobbyists propose a 1.5% wealth tax on this group, which would potentially ramp up domestic revenue by KSh 22 billion annually.
The lobby group identified possible barriers to implementing the wealth tax in Kenya. These include the taxman’s flawed methodologies in valuing assets like land and businesses, lapses in data collection and analysis of wealth holdings, and inevitable political opposition.
Although KRA has a premier tax office dedicated to high net worth individuals, NTA believes that closer collaboration with international tax initiatives will seal the loopholes for tax evasion and avoidance. The government is also required to carefully consider balanced and fair tax rates for these net worth individuals to prevent capital flight and diminished investment.
“A comprehensive wealth tax regime for Kenya might include elements of traditional net worth taxation, complemented by targeted measures like inheritance taxes, luxury goods taxes, and potentially context-specific elements like idle land or high-value livestock taxation,” the lobby group stated.
NTA lauded Uganda’s progress in identifying high net worth individuals, citing that only 84 Kenyans with high net worth were in the taxpayer’s register. Taxable assets will include real estate holdings, financial assets like bonds and stocks, commercial enterprises, high-value personal property like yachts and aircraft, and intellectual property rights. The lobbyists also proposed that idle land or non-primary residences should be taxed between 1% – 3% based on varying valuations.
Wealth Inequality
“To address valuation challenges, Kenya could look at the example of Switzerland, which has a long-standing experience with wealth taxation. Swiss cantons use a mix of methods including market values for listed securities and real estate, capitalised earnings approaches for unlisted businesses, and insurance values for High-value personal property,” NTA suggested.
According to World Inequality Database, the wealthiest 10% of Kenyans command almost 50% of the pre-tax national income. An even smaller 1% control 15.3% of the Income. The lobbyists use this information as background data that confirms poor wealth distribution and justifies the wealth tax.
The wealth tax has been a subject for great debate over the recent years across the world as wealth disparity deepens. In countries like Sweden where this tax was prominent in the 20th century, the government became concerned about capital flight and abolished it in 2007. Other nations like the UK consider introducing a 1.5% wealth tax on assets valued over £750,000. The same proposals have been aired in Germany, Canada, and South Africa.
Currently, nations like Spain, Norway, Switzerland, Belgium, and Argentina have wealth taxes including Capital Gains Tax and Inheritance Taxes. The lobbyists maintain that these taxes, regardless of the debates they intensify, combat illicit wealth flows and seal budgetary deficits.
