Kenya Revenue Authority Act

The Act may be cited as the Kenya Revenue Authority Act.

Provides definitions for terms used in the Act, including Authority, Board, Cabinet Secretary, Chairperson, Commissioner, financial year, member, and revenue.

Establishes an Authority called the Kenya Revenue Authority and lists activities the Authority may perform, including suing and being sued, acquiring and disposing of property, borrowing and lending money, and performing other lawful acts for furthering the Act.

The seal of the Authority must be authenticated by the signature of the Commissioner‑General and the Secretary to the Board; in their absences designated persons may authenticate the seal; documents sealed and authenticated as provided shall be deemed instruments and received in evidence.

The Authority is required to be the Government agency responsible for collecting and receiving all revenue; it must assess, collect and account for revenues under the listed written laws, advise the Government on revenue administration, perform other revenue functions as directed by the Cabinet Secretary, and may establish an institution for capacity building and training.

The Commissioner may, upon recommendation, reward any person who provides information that leads to identification or recovery of unassessed taxes or duties; the section excludes officers of the Authority and specifies monetary reward rates in subsections (2)(a)–(c).

The Board may co-opt people to take part in discussions (they cannot vote); the Cabinet Secretary may amend the Second Schedule by notice in the Gazette.

Establishes a Board of Directors as the governing body and sets membership and core functions including policy approval, performance monitoring, and staff discipline.

Chairperson and members hold office on terms in their appointment instrument for periods not exceeding three years; they may be re-appointed for one further three-year term. A Board member (other than ex officio) may resign by written notification to the Cabinet Secretary.

Appointment of the Chairperson and members may be terminated for inability to perform the functions of office due to mental or physical infirmity.

Members of the Board who have a direct or indirect personal interest in a matter must disclose that interest to the Board as soon as possible after becoming aware of the relevant facts; such members must not be present during deliberations or take part in determinations, nor influence other members.

Cabinet Secretary must appoint a Commissioner-General on the Board's recommendation; the Commissioner-General manages the Authority and may delegate functions with Board approval by notice in the Gazette; removal possible for misbehaviour, infirmity, or other sufficient cause.

The Board must appoint a Secretary to the Board; the Secretary must arrange the business of Board meetings, keep records of meetings and proceedings, and perform other duties as the Board may direct.

The Board appoints necessary Commissioners and determines staff terms; the Commissioner-General appoints Deputy Commissioners (with Board approval) and other staff; certain officers may attend Board meetings but cannot vote unless the Board decides otherwise.

The Commissioner-General may, with the approval of the Cabinet Secretary, transfer functions between departments of the Authority or merge departments of the Authority.

Employees are personally liable for wrongful acts or omissions done or committed wilfully or dishonestly.

All revenues collected by or payable to the Authority under this Act must be paid into the Consolidated Fund; revenues collected for any fund established by an Act of Parliament must be paid into that fund after deducting the Authority's collection expenses.

The Commissioner may appoint banking-registered persons as agents; appointed persons must transfer collected funds to designated Central Bank accounts within two days; failure attracts a penalty of two per cent of collections compounded daily and the penalty is treated as a tax debt; specified exceptions may apply.

Section 16 lists the Authority's funding sources, caps some amounts at two percent, requires unspent funds to be put into a reserve fund subject to the Board-approved budget, and gives the Cabinet Secretary and Board specific approval and determination powers.

The Commissioner must prepare and submit annual income and expenditure estimates to the Board not later than three months before the end of each financial year; the Commissioner may also submit supplementary estimates at any time before the end of the year.

The Authority must keep proper accounts and records; the Auditor‑General audits the Authority’s annual accounts and reports within specified periods; the Cabinet Secretary must lay reports before the National Assembly; audited accounts must be published within six months.

The head of internal audit must audit the Authority’s accounts and submit quarterly reports to the Commissioner; the Commissioner must present those reports to the Board at its next meeting and send copies to the Cabinet Secretary and the Controller and Auditor-General.

The Authority is exempted from the State Corporations Act (Cap. 446).

An action must be commenced within three years after the act, neglect or default complained of.

Regulations respecting the terms and conditions of service, including pensions, gratuities and other retirement benefits, of all members of staff of the Authority.

On commencement, most property formerly held by Government for specified tax departments vests in the Authority; certain Government contracts and liabilities remain with the Government; pending revenue proceedings transfer to the Authority; public officers employed for those purposes are deemed seconded to the Authority unless employed by it or secondment ends.

References in any written law to the Commissioner of Customs and Excise, the Commissioner of Income Tax or the Commissioner of Value Added Tax are to be read as references to the Commissioner-General of the Authority.

Section 24 has been deleted.

Section 24A was deleted by ActNo. 29 of 2015, 2nd Sch.

Section 25 has been deleted.