Instead of placing a 1.75% tax on e-transactions including MoMo, bank transfers, the government has been urged to rather implore telcos to reduce their charges.
A Financial Analyst, Dr Richmond Akwasi Atuahene, who said this on Asempa FM’s Ekosii Sen show Wednesday said the government must have lost it on digital inclusion with the introduction of some new taxes.
He said as a country that is eager to reduce cash withdrawals and move into digitalisation, it is not proper to place a tax on MoMo and bank transfers.
“The telcos are already charging for a certain percentage and then you also add another, it doesn’t work that way. Basically, listening to Dr Bawumia in his digitisation lecture and what the Finance Minister said is a contrasting issue because if you really want to improve electronic payment, the government should be seen to even urging the telcos to reduce their charges and not go and add more,” he said.
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To Mr Atuahene, the government’s decision to add more will mean there is no incentive for people, which to him is an area he finds very inconsistent in policy.
He wants the government to create an enabling environment by lowering the cost so that more people will be using it to do business.
According to Mr Ofori-Atta, the levy will be known as the “Electronic Transaction Levy or E-Levy” and forms part of efforts to widen the country’s tax net and rope in the informal sector.
Delivering the 2022 budget statement before Parliament on Wednesday, the minister said “After considerable deliberations, Government has decided to place a levy on all electronic transactions to widen the tax net and rope in the informal sector. This shall be known as the “Electronic Transaction Levy or E-Levy.”
“Electronic transactions covering mobile money payments, bank transfers, merchant payments and inward remittances will be charged at an applicable rate of 1.75%, which shall be borne by the sender except for inward remittances, which will be borne by the recipient,” he explained.