Rwanda Revenue Authority (RRA) urges business owners to declare and pay the first income tax quarterly prepayment tax for the year 2024 by the June 28 deadline, to ensure ample time for assistance for those who may need it.

The ongoing prepayment is based on sales made in January, February, and March 2024. It is calculated from the tax paid for the previous annual tax period divided by the turnover of the same tax period, multiplied by the current quarterly turnover.

Commissioner for Domestic Taxes at RRA, Hajara Batamuliza, said all individuals who earned profits in 2023 or registered a business that year and declared income tax for the first time in March 2024, are subject to the quarterly prepayment.

"When we talk about profitable and taxable activities, there is no exclusivity. All individuals, including those who own vehicles such as motorcycles, trucks, taxis, or buses and are engaged in transporting people and goods as a profitable activity, are subject to this tax prepayment,” she said.

"There are other sectors, such as businesses with diversified operations, service providers, and banks. All activities conducted in Rwanda, where a person received taxable income, are subject to the quarterly prepayment,” she added.

Declarations can be made via the RRA website (www.rra.gov.rw) for businesses under the real regime or by dialling *800# for micro-enterprises under the flat regime. Payments are made using Mobile Money, MobiCash, or Internet Banking.

Commissioner Batamuliza said there are times when taxpayers wait until the last day, resulting in late declarations or delayed payments. These actions should be avoided as they can lead to penalties.

Change in declaration and payment deadline

According to the law establishing taxes on income, taxpayers must declare and pay a quarterly prepayment tax to the account of the Tax Administration by June 30, September 30, and December 31 of the year of taxable business activities.

However, Article 8 of Law No. 020/2023 of March 31, 2023, on tax procedures, specifies that if a deadline falls on a public holiday or a weekend, the deadline is moved to the last working day prior to the holiday or weekend. This is the case for this month.

"It means that since the 30 of June will be a Sunday, the deadline will be moved to Friday, 28. All taxpayers should be aware that the deadline is June 28,” Commissioner Batamuliza said.

"Our staff are ready to help taxpayers at all our offices across the country. I urge them not to wait until the 28 but to come earlier so we can assist them. Once they come late, it becomes difficult,” she added.

Waiting until the last day can also lead to technological difficulties, which may result in late declarations and associated penalties.

A taxpayer can declare taxes in advance, ensuring payment is made before the due date.