Cleaner outshines N$1bn company in tax payments

A government cleaner paid N$36 498 in income tax between 2013 and 2018, while a corporate entity that made over N$926 million during the same period paid zero taxes, the Namibia Revenue Agency (NamRA) has revealed.In court papers, NamRA commissioner Sam Shivute noted that Chinese firm Zhong Mei Engineering Group made zero tax payments during the period under review – despite scoring government tenders to the tune of nearly N$1 billion.The tax agency shocked Zhong Mei recently after deducting N$33 million in pending taxes directly from its bank account.The company has since dragged NamRA to court, seeking a reversal of the deduction. It is represented by prominent lawyer Sisa Namandje.Massive challengeIn his answering affidavits, Shivute said many companies continue to evade tax payments.In the 2022/2023 financial year, corporate income tax amounted to a mere N$8.1 billion compared to the N$16.1 million paid in income tax by individuals.According to Shivute, there is a massive challenge in the Namibian tax system with huge disparities currently experienced by NamRA. “Instances of non-compliance with the tax laws over several years, false statements made to NamRA on income and expenditure, cases of fraud, contrivance and undue tax refunds are received.”‘Hugely skewed’“The tax burden is hugely skewed against individual tax payers. As an example, I hasten to mention that an employee that holds the position of cleaner in government between 2013 to 2018 has to date paid an amount of N$36 498 in taxes, compared to a corporate entity that has made and retained chargeable income of N$926 577 037 for the tax period of 2013 to 2018 and has paid zero taxes,” he said.Shivute expressed great concern with the widespread failure to pay taxes in Namibia, saying the tax compliance rate currently stands at just 48%. He stressed that the principles of a good or healthy tax system dictate equity, and this means those in equal circumstances should pay an equal amount of tax while those with higher income should pay higher tax. He also highlighted that it is NamRA’s goal to become a world-class revenue agency, serving with passion to positively impact the livelihood of every Namibian. “The general compliance rate in Namibia stands at 48%, which creates an imbalance in tax collection. Some pay their taxes as required by the law, while others do not pay any taxes. The current statistics confirm that during the 2022/2023 financial year, individuals contributed double the amount companies paid [in tax],” he said. jemima@namibiansun.com

Cleaner outshines N$1bn company in tax payments

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Namibian Sun 2025-07-04

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Cleaner outshines N$1bn company in tax payments

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Namibian Sun 2025-07-04

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