President John Dramani Mahama has formally approved a series of legislative initiatives aimed at eliminating different taxes, including the Electronic Transfer Levy (E-Levy), Betting Tax, and Emissions Tax.
This action is in line with the National Democratic Congress’s (NDC) pledge to lessen Ghanaians’ financial burden.
Finance Minister Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson introduced eight measures to Parliament on March 13, 2025, with the goal of repealing and amending a number of taxes and levies. These measures were the Earmarked Funds Capping and Realignment (Amendment) Bill, 2025, the Electronic Transfer Levy (Repeal) Bill, 2025, the Emissions Levy (Repeal) Bill, 2025, and the Income Tax (Amendment) Bill, 2025.
A 1% fee was applied to all electronic transactions, including online purchases and mobile money transfers, when the E-Levy was first implemented in 2022. Because of the apparent impact on discretionary earnings, there was strong public opposition to its adoption. Stakeholders in the gaming business also criticized the Betting Tax, which imposed a 10% tax on gross winnings from gambling activities.
John Dramani Mahama, the National Democratic Congress’ (NDC) then-flagbearer, promised to do away with these taxes within his first 120 days in government if elected ahead of the general elections in 2024. His administration has kept that campaign pledge with the recent passage of the modified tax measures.
Source:Mybrytfmonline.com/Joseph Asare
