By Juliet Nalwooga
The Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) has been sued for allegedly not effecting new lower taxes enacted by Parliament under the amended Income Tax Act, for the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) that came into force a year ago.
The petitioner, Open Forum Initiative, a civic-tech policy advocacy group, through their lawyers of Atigo & Co. Advocates contend that the amendment significantly reduced the presumptive tax rates applicable to small businesses with a gross turnover of less than Shs150m.
They want the Commissioner General’s Office as a quasi-judicial court, to carry forward the money in excess of taxes by SMEs to the next financial year.
John Walugembe the Executive Director, Federation of Small and Medium Enterprises (FSMEs) says the act served a relief package amidst a pandemic and that it should as such be effected.
The amended Income Tax Act started being operationalized on July 1, 2020.
