The Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) is set to launch a Modified Taxation System in July 2025, aimed at broadening the tax net by targeting informal sector workers, particularly those in the Greater Accra Region.
This was revealed by Dr. Alex Kombat, Assistant Commissioner and Head of the Research and Policy Unit at the GRA, during the launch of the final report of the Informal Sector Tax Compliance Research Project in Accra on Thursday.
The launch, themed “Ghana’s Untapped Economy: Analysis of Tax Compliance Behaviour of Informal Sector Workers in the Greater Accra Region”, was organised by BudgIT Ghana in partnership with the International Budget Partnership (IBP) and the Society of Women in Taxation (SWIT) Ghana.
Dr. Kombat described the informal sector as difficult to tax, noting that while regulated businesses registered with the Registrar General’s Department are easier to track, unregulated ones are much harder to bring into the tax system.
To address this, the GRA is introducing the Modified Taxation System.
Dr. Kombat detailed that under this new system, taxpayers with an annual turnover below GH¢20,000 will pay a fixed quarterly tax of GH¢25, GH¢35, or GH¢45, depending on their income bracket. For those with annual turnover between GH¢20,000 and GH¢500,000, a flat rate of 3% of turnover will apply, paid quarterly. Entities with turnover above GH¢500,000 will be subject to direct assessment.
“This is a big shift from our traditional tax collection methods. It’s designed to simplify payments, reduce administrative burdens, and help bring more people into the tax net,” Dr. Kombat said.
He emphasized that education and public awareness will be key to the program’s success, while calling on the media, civil society, and local government partners to support its rollout and public education efforts.
“We have started sensitizing the public. Our tax offices are actively educating taxpayers, and some are already paying using the modified regime. But we want to scale it up.”
Esi Sam, Chairperson of SWIT Ghana, supported the initiative, stressing that simplicity in tax processes is crucial. “Simplicity is the best. If you understand something, doing it is easy. People in the informal sector don’t have time to read. If it’s simple and they hear it on the radio or TV, they will comply,” she stated.
Jennifer Moffatt, Country Manager for BudgIT Ghana, also lauded the initiative and pledged continued engagement with the GRA to ensure that policy recommendations from their research are incorporated into national strategies.
“The good thing is we are launching the first part of the report. We will engage GRA and hope that most of the recommendations will be included in the policy proposal to the Ministry of Finance and possibly see them in the budget.”
