Samwel GathiaIn Kenya, the government, through the Taxman, Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) expect you to declare your annual income by the end of July. The question most people ask is how do I file my tax returns? Do I have to file yet unemployed? In this post, we will answer these questions on how to file individual tax returns.
Who is Required to File Returns?
All taxpayers are required to file their annual tax returns with KRA by 30th June. This includes all persons with a KRA Pin regardless of their status: student, employed, unemployed or elderly.
Filing of Returns
The tax returns are filed annually, and depending on the income you have, there are steps you have to follow to declare that income. This varies from employment income, business income, and commissions. Where a taxpayer has not made any income, they can file nil returns.
Deadline for Filing Returns
The deadline to file your tax returns is 30th June. You can, however, file your returns as early as 1st January.
Countdown to 2025 Tax Filing Deadline
KRA always sends reminders to Taxpayers to file their tax returns on time. Don’t rush during the last minute to file your returns; file on time.
Penalties for Late Filing
Failure to file your tax returns on time attracts a penalty of Ksh 20,000. As per the current Tax Procedures Act. The Penalty is payable to the KRA Commissioner for Domestic Taxes.
If you are penalised for late filing, you can not be issued with a Tax Compliance Certificate (TCC)
Read more about TCC and why it is essential for you to have one here.
How to File Your KRA Tax Returns in Kenya
Filing your returns will depend on whether you have income or not. Those with income include those in business, those employed and those who earn commissions and professional fees.
You can file the returns by logging into the itax portal or you can assign a tax agent to file your returns for you. Do not give the task to unqualified people, especially from the Cyber Cafes; there are very many cases of people who find themselves in the wrong hands with the taxman for a procedure that was done wrong, especially in KRA Pin registrations and even filing of returns.
Below, I will give a summary on how to file your returns.
a) Filing Nil Returns
This is for only taxpayers with zero annual income. To file;
- Log into your itax Portal
- From the Top Menu, click on Returns and chose File Nil Return
- Select the tax obligations and indicate the period then submit your returns
- You will get an acknowledgement slip with a reference number; you can print and keep it for future reference.
b) Filing Employment Income
For employment income, your employer is required to provide you with a P9 form to use in filing your tax returns.
c) Filing Business Income
If you run a business or paid in commissions and issued with a withholding tax certificate, you have to prepare some financial statements which can be used to file your business income. For a business, it has to prepare a statement of profit and loss and a balance sheet which are used in filing the tax returns.
Tax Payment
Where there is a principal tax payable upon the filing of KRA tax returns, one is required to pay the tax payable to the KRA Commissioner.
The tax payment can be made from commercial banks or via Mpesa.
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Samwel Mwangi Gathia is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA), Certified Secretary (CS), an MBA graduate, and a member of the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Kenya (ICPAK) and the Institute of Human Resource Management (IHRM). He is the Lead Consultant at Anziano Consultants.
A practising accountant and business consultant based in Nairobi, Kenya, Samwel brings extensive expertise in accounting, taxation, investment, insurance, corporate governance, and human resource management. He holds an MBA (Corporate Management) from KCA University, a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Nairobi and a Certificate of Proficiency in Insurance (COP) from the College of Insurance.
As a seasoned trainer and consultant, he is passionate about financial literacy, corporate compliance, strategic management, and FinTech-driven digital transformation. Through his articles, he simplifies complex finance and governance topics to help individuals and businesses make smarter financial and business decisions.
Credentials: MBA |BA | CPA | CS | ICPAK | IHRM | COP (Insurance)
