THE Zambia Revenue Authority (ZRA) collected over K8 trillion by October this year, exceeding the government target for the whole year by K426.6 billion.
Government revenue collection target for this year was K7.75 trillion.
ZRA commissioner general, Chriticles Mwansa, announced this at a press briefing in Lusaka yesterday.
He also said ZRA might not reach the targeted US$415 million tax collection under the new mining regime by this month end because the windfall tax had completely fallen off due to low copper prices on the international market.
Mr Mwansa said by the end of October, ZRA collected K10.597 trillion in gross taxes while the tax refunds stood at K2.415 trillion.
“The net tax take stood at K8.18 trillion against a target of K7.754 trillion, thereby registering a surplus of K426.6 billion or 5.5 percent above target,” he said.
Mr Mwansa attributed the K426 billion surplus to higher tax revenue collection, particularly under company tax, pay as you earn (PAYE), mineral royalty, medical tax, excise duty, trade taxes and medical levy.
He said all other types of taxes recorded higher than programmed with the exception of domestic value added tax (VAT).
ZRA collected K3.6 billion under company tax, K168.5 billion PAYE, K40 billion withholding tax and K167.6 billion mineral royalties.
The authority also collected K176.4 billion excise duty, K273.7 billion import VAT, K193 billion customs duty, K14 billion export duty and K3.1 billion medical levy.
And Mr Mwansa said ZRA’s major revenue collections were from the energy and mining sectors with the latter recording K293.1 billion under the new mining tax regime from April to October this year.
Mr Mwansa said of the K293.1 billion, K126 billion was collected as windfall tax while K22.2 billion came from mineral royalties.
He said ZRA might not be able to meet the targeted US$415 million by the end of this year because the windfall tax had completely fallen off while collections from mineral royalty had drastically gone down due to low copper prices.
“When you calculate the windfall tax at current copper prices, it has completely fallen off. This will not be collected unless copper prices change overnight,” Mr Mwansa said.
He said ZRA might not get much revenue from mineral royalty because it depended on the bulkiness and the price at which it was sold.
Mr Mwansa said although all mining companies were complying with the legal provisions set by Government, some of them were not up to date in remittance of funds to ZRA.
By October this year, revenue from the mines stood at K7.8 trillion against the 2008 Parliament target of K9.1 trillion, leaving a balance of K1.245 trillion for November and December.
Notwithstanding the drastic drop in commodity prices on the international market resulting from the negative impact of the global financial crisis, ZRA projections indicated that it was likely to surpass its revenue target by about K100 billion within the remaining period.
“In this regard, we are intensifying our enforcement activities so that we can mobilise more financial resources for the government,” Mr Mwansa said.
He said this year ZRA had recorded successes in areas like the mordernisation reform programme that aimed at enhancing effectiveness and greatly contributing to sustainable and predictable national revenue.
Mr Mwansa said, however, that ZRA had over the last 10 months continued to face some challenges in its operations, particularly where smuggling at border points was concerned.
He said ZRA had continued to engage law enforcement agents to help fight the scourge which was a danger to the country’s economy.
Mr Mwansa said ZRA had put in place measures to improve enforcement and compliance across various types of tax.
The authority had also strengthened information sharing with other stakeholders which had resulted in improved detection of tax evasion.
[Zambia Daily Mail]
NO 1
This is work well done by ZRA. pliz continue but stop corruption on the borders.
Excellent! More money in the national coffers.
good job.. now may u plz do some re construction to make the building look nice and britghten lusaka!!!
The problem with ZR is that of charging more than u spent on a second hand car from japan.Its not fair my was kwacha equivalent K12000,000 ,i was charged K14,000,000 imagine! and today u come to boast that u ve exceeded yo target,ma rubbish!
good work by ZRA,plz executive donnot plunder the resources.make sure money is prudently utilised fo common good.otherwise good job mr citicos mwansa and the team.just seal off some loop holes where a few ZRA officials’ hands are dirty..currupt.
job well done but lets see some development in this country not just in urban areas but even the remotest of the rural areas of Zambia
#7 Right on. You know I pay +4m Kwacha PAYE but road by my house has dithes as big as Ngorongoro Crator. Time I got a return on this
thieves thats wat ZRA are!
His name sounds like testicles
Okay thats good to exceed the target but it was the same for the other year. Another thing is we need to have the utilisation of government funds in summary printed at the back of all the tax payer’s payslips for transparency.So that at the face of it tax payers are aware of how the money will be used. Also Banda and his team should come up with a strategy for this country’s economy amid the global finiancial crisis please and the nation should be told about it. A proper strategy in phases plus action that the government are going to take. This will assist the stakeholders following up this strategy to implemention as well as deter corrupt practices. I dont know if am making myself clear.
This is a sign or indication that theres heavy taxation in our Country. Lets hope the money will be chanelled to developmental projects.
There is no need to be happy about this only a few people benefit from these profits. Look at a million of Zambians suffering bad roads no medicine in hospitals and and number of issues which need the attention of the government. This government is fake and useless.
AND HOW MUCH WAS POCKETED THRU CORRUPTION PRACTICLES??? K4.5 TRILLION I THINK!
TO HELL WITH YOUR SURPLUS. WHO BENEFITS ?
#12 thats very true. ZRA is reaping from us seriously, PAYE is too much duty for second hand cars is also too much. You get a gross salary of K20m which is what you have worked for but you end up paying PAYE of about K6.5m you remain with K13.5m is this fair really?
not surprised,you even charge people for recieving Gifts,very unethical organisation.
ok now lets see whether you will reconstruct your HQ and other posts through out Zambia.
I MEANT HOW MUCH WAS POCKETED THRU CORRUPT PRACTISES??? K4.5 TRILLION I THINK!
Can any one remember the current budget in monetary terms? How are the collections in relation to the running budget. Coz i think over the long term the target should be to collect enough maney to fund our national budget then we can avoid unnecessry borrowing.
now where does that money go sure imwe banthu
when you cant even give back to the people fuel prices are still high, mealie meal is like idont know also. Where are we goin with this goverment….. guys?
Good work but what does the money do for the country?
1. The ZRA HQ bulding and many other buildings in Cairo Road are in urgent need of a facelift. I have yet to see dirty and ugly buildings in SA similar to those in Lusaka.
2. Roads are in a bad state.
3. Hospitals are inadequately funded.
4. Schools have no textbooks, labs, libraries, sports equipment, etc.
5. No welfare benefits for the aged.
6. Agriculture is a joke.
The list is endless. So who is benefiting? The people in power.
Job weldone ZRA and now wolves are ready to pounce.
This very good work but one thing that trips me is that why is the country so dilapidated like a school about to close or like we ve been at war?I only Hope and pray that the people of Zambia will rise up and demand for that money to be used wisely for the betterment of all.A country like Uganda,has better policies regarding the taxes and it looks better than ours.So please let us not channel that money towards salaries and buying of expensive cars.ZRA should be an organisation that everyone should look up to more over it is not productive it only collects the hard earned money from poor Zambian people.Let us rebuild the country its not too let to let.
Good job ZRA but where does this money go because we always told the govt has money when it comes to developmental issues.
ZRA must be stealing from the poor like me.Why is it that they are always above their expected results,always a favourable variance.Even me as a boss I would get worried……
# 24 I MEANT TO SAY WE ARE ALWAYS TOLD THAT THE GOVT HAS NO MONEY
ZRA, WORK ON YOUR BUILDING IT LOOKS DIRTY!!!
What an ugly building! Why cant ZRA use part of this money to construct a new Revenue House. It will help in boosting the economy. I have always wondered why despite this so called economic growth there hasnt been a corresponding boom in office blocks. Honestly Lusaka is greying with its socialist era concrete rectangular squares. Let us splash up our city. We are even been outdone by Rwanda and Tanzania whose per capita incomes are $200 and $400 respectively. Zambia’s is $800. We can use the making over of our city as our own home grown stimulus package.
Iwe Dodo are you female?
Well done ZRA. how much money have you ‘eaten’up so far coz the figures given are net of that. its good for a change considering that for the last 5yrs you have been making losses. maybe your books are still not in order as the profit recorded is not for the operations of ZRA but from the zambian pipo. enhance revenue collection by putting your house in order first.
# FAKE GOLYATI 10, i thought i was the only one who noticed. but this man what sort of a name is this. i have googled it and nothing comes up
DODOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!
I hope PF does not plan to demostrate over that surplus collection.
Seriosly. This money never gets back to the people. Instead those in power fatten themselves, entertain themselves and loot this tax payer by awarding themselves flimsy allowances while the rest of the zambians must accept living under a dollar a day. This is heartbreaking, immmoral and a disgusting abomination. Show me the progress. We are eager to live for now and never plan or enact policies that really work to improve our lives. We languish with thirst while standing knee dip in a river full of water. Zedians lets redeem our motherland and pass it on as a solid inheritance to our children. Stop the corruption.
#19 Kopala yes. This is actually a paradox. The National Budget for last year was approximately K12.5 trilion which is just K4.5 trillion more than what the ZRA has collected. Why is it that govt still depends so much on donars to finance its progrmmes when the ZRA has this much? Where does it all go? Can an economist please explain.
Ati shani ba bloggee.Mulifye best?
# 31, if you google Mr Mwansa Chriticles you will find his brief profile and you will see he was a director trade and tariffs in Brussels,and he went to st clements secondary school,then UNZA etc, he seems to know his story
I meant the National Budget for this year.
GOOD FIGURES,but we want to hear that a school or ka simple clinic has beeb built using the surplus,now nothing!! those who nhave data tell me,a reward will be given since x. chungu is in our midst now…
LT YOU HAVE CHEWED MY COMMENT,MULEMFWAILA
LT YOU HAVE CHEWED MY COMMENT,MULEMFWAILA
#35, Only a “politiconomist” can explain the paradox.All economics intuitions have been defiled here.
chungu has come back to get a pice of that money
The accountability is poor, ZRA over charge people thus this amount. Lets wait to see how the funds will be used. They are exploiting and people they just giving in. Look at those people buying japanese cars, they are charged morethan he spent. Malabishi aya!! Atase.
good job but where they even tax gifts sent to relatives home,ah!hence the surplus.also fake reevaluation of goods,yu present authentic receits of a say an N95 nokia phone bought in HONG KONG @250 USD equivalent,they value it at over 500usd just to milk yu,anyway if the money can be used prudently let it be so.
#5 what you are saying is true i was in nakonde last week i was charged more then what buoght a vehicle from Japan.i brought the Vehicle at K 11,000,000 and i paid k 14,600,000 to ZRA and they think more money for RB.
Thanks Hunter #35, infact it is under 2 trillion, so with better control of our bodder posts or making them more efficient in terms of collections we can fund our budget!They should try and increase the capacity of our bodder posts so that trucks dont spend 3 weeks at the boders as this reduces the amount of revenue in the government coffers.
Chi Criticles testickles
These chaps should stop being corrupt first
Shikwapwasha is saying that the country has a shortfall of 100,000mt of maize and that come february all the maize will have run out.We don’t want to hear that rotten nonsense with the 8t in grz coffers.
we hear xavier chungu is in,why wud a fugitive come bk.i think this is calculated move.what do u think
we hear xavier chungu is in,why wud a fugitive come bk.i think this is calculated move.what do u think
musiyeni chriticle
chungu the burger was tipped. He’s actually
a free chap
Ok chriticles aliko critical maningi
ati bwa ba bloggy
critically speaking chriticles is not all that critical.
Welldone ZRA! but please lets ensure that this money is put to good use such as Health, Roads, Education, Agriculture and secure enough FOOD especially that by February we are all faced with starvation.
Well done Bwana Commissioner General.
No.33- Wanzelu- Ulibe nzelu! If you have nothing to contribute please, keep quiet. PF is a party of integrity and we are not worried about the surplus-rather our concern is how these funds will be applied ( or misapplied) by MMD.If we keep quiet as citizens, the MMD will continue plundering our own money that we contribute from our sweat.So Wanzelu, get some nzelu and keep your eyes open!
Chriticles mwansa has done a lot for mother Zed.He knows how to correct taxes hence more surplus but the problem remain with the Govt.Govt plans for our delopmental projects.Therefore put blame on RB who distribute blown envelops. congratulation Mr mwansa.
Ifyotulefwaya so!u’ve made the name everywhere and Zed proud on this world.
He was the first african to be appointed as a director of World Custom Organisation in Brussels.
Yes, Surplus through excess taxation but wasted through paying unjustified salaries and allowances.
Chriticles Mwansa knows where ZRA is coming from, where it is and where it is going. I believe he also has a vision for the institution looking at the way he has turned things around.
He is the right man for the job and I have no doubt that he will perform and deliver.
Let us give credit where it is due.
8 trillion – that is about $2 billion US. At least they can’t complain they don’t have money. Not when they are spending $100 million on a constitutional conference, and when they don’t even hesitate to vote themselves pay raises.
So ‘there is no money’ can never again be an excuse to object to anything.
Mudala ba Chriticles, use just K100million to paint your offices. It still looks ridiculous. Don’t behave like Tongas who sell all the beef and only cook blood and skin for their farming.
How about distributing $1 billion to local government, empowering accountants and getting the money out to where. Much more money must be spent on actual service delivery, and in my opinion that can be done best at the local government level.
And arrest any government official who drives around in a high end car.
This is not difficult. Read the book From Third World to First : The Singapore Story: 1965-2000 by Singapore president Lee Kwan Yew. He has an excellent list of measures to reduce petty corruption and big corruption.
Good work ZRA. Nomba money ngayaya ku GRZ: Here is a likely budget;
1. Responsibility allownces
2. Official visit to Nigeria
3. Ministers official vehicles
4. Official visit to China
5. Bla blablablablabla
Nice job ZRA, but they colect more if they formulate a better tax policy to have the many Zambian business men and tuntemba holders that evade tax. They should make it manditory for evey individual to have a tax ID number and declare their income yearly.
“ZRA collected K3.6 billion under company tax, K168.5 billion PAYE”. Give workers a break by lowering their taxes. Why should companies be contributing only 3.6B?
This is when Zambians should rise up to the occasion; if ZRA has this much money, what is the point in ZESCO going to source debt from ADB or World Bank? This is a hoax! Someone is just trying to impress the new president and justify their increased remunerations. Other countries are now using these surpluses to cusion the effects of financial melt-down. Where is our government and ZRA taking this huge amount of money? You ‘singers and dancers’ for the politicians come back to your right minds and begin to think!
Mawgwira nchito ba ZRA. But then, who is responsible to take care of that surplus? If it is GRZ money, shall we please use that money to subsidise mealie-meal prices and the fertiliser ones!
Who sets these targets that are always exceeded anyway? Isn’t this tied to these guys bonus’ structure? Make the target realistic, you can’t be having these numbers while at the same time the country always records deficits, ECON 101.They are constantly hitting the same numbers every year, that should now be the target, then give them a 5% allowance either way!
Job Well done C.G. Keep it up.