The Zambia Revenue Authority (ZRA) says the measure for financial institutions requiring all bank account holders to obtain a Taxpayer Identification Number (TPIN) is aimed at increasing taxpayer compliance.
ZRA Commissioner General, Kingsley Chanda says paying tax is the responsibility of every citizen and ZRA needs to track all those in receipt of undeclared income such as foreign dividends and interest.
Mr. Chanda says the measure by government will facilitate provision of information from financial institutions to ZRA in times of need.
He says Government has made it clear that it will not be deducting a specified amount per month from bank account holders as a result of this measure contrary to what is circulating in certain media circles that government wants to start taxing account holders.
Government this year, made it mandatory for financial institutions registered under the Banking and Financial Services Act to require all bank account holders to obtain a Taxpayer Identification Number from ZRA.
The Authority has encouraged people without TPINs to obtain one as it is now mandatory for every person to have a TPIN.
The same TPIN can also be used for other transactions like importing a car or other goods or during transfer of land and other properties.
This is according to a statement issued by ZRA Senior Communications Officer Oliver Nzala to ZNBC News in Lusaka.
Amatobo as if he has Kwashiokor! mubapime ba Chanda!
Paying tax is the responsibility of every citizen and MISUSING taxes received is the responsibility of EVERY politician. Now you know
These chaps have no other sources of income apart from taxation. They are now trying to milk a dry udder, we kachemas don’t do that, because it can get you kicked off the milking stool by the cow.
In organised societies such info including social security numbers is compounded in a systematic way. In our sick society its easy for every jim & jack to have 3 NRCs each. No wonder Margaret uses 2 diplomatic passports to go into nightclubs. Employees (both grz & non grz) pay taxes yet ZRA has failed to make these citizens understand this. We need a centralised data collection system.
This will hurt the economy in the same way that useless statutory instrument requirement of making applications to transfer amounts over $20,000 hurt the economy is a very bad way. This is what nepotism can do to sensitive institutions of our country, mediocrity in thinking becomes the order of the day.
Tax ID is only for businesses and charities. Chanda will go down on this one, it’s illegal, this I know.
These characters have failed to get tax from the Indians and want to suck dry the Zambian worker! The businessmen of Asian origin do not even keep their money in banks and their businesses are not even visited for compliance; they are only visited for bribes!
Ichimona….leave our money alone
More banks to close down soon and somebody is digging his own grave. Slow down chanda. All over the world, economies are run by crooks, they will not spare you. Presidents don’t dictate their economies, crooks do.
That is how World Bank and IMF track how rich or poor countries are and their financial liquidity. They monitor your economies so they don’t grow. Once they see grow the, they asked you to devalue your currency or increase your interest rates. NO WHITE MAN WANTS AFRICANS TO BE RICH LIKE THEM. Because if you become rich, they’ll no one to get loans from them.
This is PF squeezing the working and middle classes dry. After stealing all the Eurobonds, this is their only option. Zambia is turning into a PFolice state. Combined with cell phone registration, and a national data centre, PF has introduced a Big Brother that watches you everywhere you go, even in your toilet as you fart. We are all victims of the effects of the bakaponya disastrous election of Satan in 2011.
@2.1 chi black tooth something, dont talk about ba sata, you coward
Get a Life Lombe, There are lots of black Africans with lots of money in Swiss bank accounts ripping off their own (even in PF- Zambia) and the richest people in the world are the Arabs and Asians. So get your facts straight and stop being a racist pig and always blaming the whites and accept the crooks come in every colour.
So now banks will be deprived of deposits as people will want to transact outside banks
Even in advanced country like SA, there is no required for TAX number to open a bank account
I live in Italy, boss and every person is given a fiscal code. The same is used for fines and the like. Let’s put politics aside, this will make tax collection more efficient and also reduce the corruption that comes with cash payments if they integrate other payments in this
I lived there. There’s no such requirement
WRONG you must supply a SA Id and if you don’t have you must show a foreign passport and you get a foreign blocked account that has a withholding tax.
Complete rubbish. 50+ years of wasted independence.
What about those people in the diaspora but maintain accounts back home? What happens to them? Can we have answer please.
You should still get a TPIN as non-domiciled. This is just as fair as it could be. So many people break the law without knowing it. People in the diaspora with properties in Zambia are getting tax free rentals from tenants and they are the most vocal about government failures to provide services. My only concern here is that other people with tuntemba and ba mwenye who are making a lot of money are still not captured for tax. But this is a good start. The only alternative is to change the currency every 5 years, to force everyone to take their money to the bank and then demand a TPIN before it can be changed.
@6.1 here comes a lumpen blind supporter, supporting even dung for the sake of it
This is a sign of desperation by an illegitimate government. Your time is near.
Lungu and his PF have borrowed, stolen and SPENT as much as they can and have now run out of money to steal.
So the pressure is on ZRA to find more loot to pay for the international tourism and Jamesoni parties!
Iam closing my back account..! After all banks keep on deducting bank charges from my hard earned cash……but no interest on my money..! This move will discourage many from banking. Go round sensitising people before forcing us into something that we don’t understand. Not everyone is conversant with your zra terminology..!
panyo pa Boma
This man has a nose and a half. I think he deserves to pay tax twice for that nose. Meanwhile pf promised more money in our pockets so why now are they desperate to bleed hard working people dry. Tell lungu to cut down on his trips and stop misuse of our tax money
Air is free. Whats your problem NEZ?
i pay as i earn and again i’am taxed as well as bank charges.mwalobelyauma.accounts will be closed and so will banks wind up their businesses.pepani a mutati.
In Zambia I have never seen the government do anything good for its citizens, nothing at all. All my life, its always been rip-offs , corruption, mismanagement, lack of planning name it, over spending, excessive interests on loans … I feel very ashamed everyday. Why do we even a president and the government at all? I don’t see any value.
In Zambia I have never seen the government do anything good for its citizens, nothing at all. All my life, its always been rip-offs , corruption, mismanagement, lack of planning name it, over spending, excessive interests on loans … I feel very ashamed everyday. Why do we even have a president and the government at all? I don’t see any value.
Yaabah…! Now I will be demanding cash for all tuma PJs and tenants, please stop making those deposits into my account!
What next? Tax clearance certificate to be produced before being allowed to leave the country? Foreign goods and foreign currency only to be legally available to government ministers and their families and friends? Katondo Street starts trading on the stock exchange? Ukutumpa
Goodbye my bank account. Mattress here I come
This Chanda guy is a complete insane caractor. Go back to your roots Mr. Trying to show he is working . My foot ..
Fellow citizens, are we going to just sit and joke about this dangerous move? This is exactly how things started in Zimbabwe. When banks fail for want of liquidity in form of savings, that sends all the wrong signals into the economy and it is the economy that suffers. The affluent will simply move their money to a foreign account where such nonsense of pick pocketing by the government does not exist. Imagine you pay tax as you earn your income and then they follow your little savings and tax again? This is not the way to tax citizens! This is broad daylight robbery! As for me, any bank that will ask me for such nonsensical requirements should consider themselves fired!
@uncle charles we remit property withholding tax this is deducted by my tenants and paid directly to ZRA we have a clause in the lease agreement to cover the action so please don’t bother us who have chosen to work and leave abroad and dutifully pay duty
Now PF is really treading on deadly grounds & stepping on people’s toes.
But when it comes to their hard earned money, Zambians don’t mess around – it will be total war.
Zambians will simply close their accounts & keep their money at home.
Some employees will even start demanding to paid their salaries in cash.
People in the diaspora will also stop sending their dollars to Zambian banks or simply use Western to send money to their relatively.
In simple terms, nobody will be motivated to open a bank in Zambia, be it the locals, foreigners, or diaspora people.
End result is that a lot of Banks will close utimately taking down the economy.
It is a retrogressive step if somebody can tell PF.
One way of curbing on money laundering is by discouraging use of cash for transactions. A lot of rich people don’t pay tax. Some of these people are emerald miners who normally sell their stones cash and as such they are “exempt ” from taxes.
Once again they are saying that the government wont deduct monies from peoples bank accounts. Which member of the public said this ? Why does the government keep on talking about this ? Where there is smoke there is fire.
This was on FB by some online media.
Ba Chanda sure nikwisa tulepela we are poor people akali konse government kulyamo.
Comment: good move
Failed leadership indeed, trying to milk a dead carcass. Just accept that you have lamentably failed you morons. The banks are already milking us like no man’s business with tariffs that they increase almost every month. These headless chickens with their vision less one are from the pit of hell sent to annihilate all of us with taxes unheard of since the borne of civilization. What did we do to deserve this mediocrity and sheer incompetence of epic proportions.First they stole the election and now everyone of them at ECZ are resigning for fear of what might come out if the petition is head. Not all is lost remember Chiluba thought he was a god, Chagwa your time is coming.
they have looted the government coffers now they want to loot citizens bank accounts !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
what about the markets, there is a lot of undocumented transactions taking place in these places.Chisokone Market in Kitwe , Soweto market in Lusaka etc, these are huge markets were huge transactions take place every hour.People operating in these market places can be made to pay taxes one way or the other, But the government has simply failed to tap into these trading places, all they want is to keep squeezing the few who are in the so called formal sectors.This is not a fair way of collecting revenue.
You’re not there so let me tell you how and why the colonial government used to run a services oriented administration. You paid for your bicycle, your dogs. Villagers also paid tax. Everyone complied and the result was excellent service delivery. You’re even supplied with a new dust bin which was regularly emptied. If you visited a village you’re on your return subjected to a thorough medication so that you didn’t bring disease from Kashikishi to Wusakile.
Is our money safe in the bank
MORE MONEY IN YOUR POCKETS
Positively speaking, taxes are necessary to implement government programme and any undertaking in good faith should be encouraged. What I see as a problem is the failure by government to attach reasonableness. For example, while fuel levy has been maintained, we now have to add toll fees for the same roads that never show much improvement( Mind you the sudden bettering of roads during elections was as a result of loans). Equally saddening is the fact that while there is a requirement by all nationals to pay tax, the president is busy promising development only to sections of the country. At the end of the day, this erodes all the confidence people would have in what you are trying to do.
CHARGES ON ONE VEHICLE K625 ROAD TAX, K 150 CARBON EMISSION TAX, K50 FITNESS, K450 COMPULSORY INSURANCE, TOLL FEES FROM KAFUE TO NDOLA – KAFUE K20, SHIMABALA K20, KATUBA K20, MANYUMBI K20, KAFULAFUTA K20 PER TRIP U MAKE TO NDOLA FROM KAFUE, PARKING IN LUSAKA K5 PER HOUR – PLUS INCIDENTALS FOR POLICE CHARGES ALONG THE WAY. WHERE IS THE MORE MONEY IN OUR POCKETS PEOPLE?
It is a good move as long as service delivery improves.
We will start keeping money in our mattresses and pillows imwe ba mumbwe nomba.
Were are We Going people. The IMF told them tO reduce some ministers` allowances and they refused like babies crying for their mothers. How did they come up with such evil manners. Look at them first and analyze them one by one. They borrowed a lot and spend those money on their mansions, Buying trucks, sending their children to European expensive schools. Buying their girlfriends Luxury vehicles. now they want citizens to pay for their un wisely spending. To tell them the truth. namufilwa fye ukuteka. Things is not good In Zambia. Such thinking is evil. Pay as you ern is enough. Fwayeni fye ama means yambi. Fill pity about Zambians who are suffering from hunger. And what have done to the citizen In order for them to be Taxed like that?
If ZRA were serious about collecting taxes, they would visit the Rwandese/Burundians, Indians and Chinese running businesses, the majority of them do not have Tax Clearance Certificates, they use tax invoices where they have put fake TPIN numbers. Anyway most of these people keep their money in their homes, the only people who will be hurt are the poor Zambians who get paid through the bank. They will now be taxed twice on their meager salaries. I have never come across a country which is so cruel to its own people and favours foreigners. PF you have dug your own grave on this one.
The Late Great MCS spoke about reducing taxes for all Zambians! That was the main campaign promise he made just when he formed PF in 2001! Now this Mutati chap is trying to kill the Zambian economy before it can even grow!
There is no country in the World where your Bank Account is Linked to the National Revenue Authority!
We already pay VAT on every product purchased.
Why is the govt doing this?
Mr President Sir, please Fire Mutati !!!!
Just reduce top Govt officials salaries, allowances and Luxury Vehicles and we will save millions without killing ordinary Zambians savings!
I agree with everything else you have said, but all accounts in the US are connected to IT’S.when a cash movement of 10 000 or more occurs, IRS is informed. When you withdraw from your savings account more than 6 times, you are charged a fee. Few examples for evidence. When you owe taxes, like was the case with The Post, the IRS does close you down, it sweeps a portion from your account. Individuals however don’t have tax id numbers besides the social security number the equivalent of NRC number. The companies have Employers Identification Number, EIN.
Mutati is a trojan horse! His role is to enter PF govt in order to destroy it from within!!!
This man is killing the ordinary Zambian with his fake economics!
In the UK, US your social security or national insurance details are all required nothing about your IRS or HMRCS details same applies in all countries!
The EU Investment Bank tasked the govt to assist SMEs to grow, what Mutati is doing is the complete opposite.
At this rate I will agree with comrade Kudos! Come 2021 we might fail, why because of the MMD trojan horses!
2020 vision many countries require a tax file number or are connected to the tax man to see what your up to, example Canada, USA, Australia, NZ, Singapore, Germany and many more.
Comrade Afro, remittance of withholding tax from Rentals is a duty of a Tenant and for yourself as Landlord, you are supposed to submit Annual returns for tax purposes and pay income tax. Therefore, you are required to remit tax for any income in your possession.
Why??
Taxes are payment for services government provides to the public. Taxes related to property should pay for services in the areas where the property is located. There’s no service of any kind from the government in areas where my properties are located.
MPs that why we vote for you make sure this issue you table it in the parliament you are our mouth piece please. God bless you
Bank cuts it’s monthly charges and service charge as well also 16%for mutati and Mr Lungu…welcome to(Riato style)
This is total nonsense! This govt likes ‘double tobela’ not only on their girl friends but also on paying taxes. A poor Zambian gets a meager salary which is heavily taxed and then they follow him to the bank to finish him completely! This is satanic!!! I condemn it in the strongest sense. Look at the region as a whole, how much taxes are being paid similar to our PAYE? I was shocked to learn that in one of our neighboring countries, workers just pay 9% as opposed to 35%+ in our country. SHAME!