BY IRENE KABAKAMA
The financial year 2021-2022 will go down in the URA books of history for kick-starting an unprecedented tax education tool. The mobile tax office is a URA bus code–named Tujenge Uganda that works as revenue mobilization vehicle, reaching out to taxpayers in the remotest areas of Uganda where URA is not stationed.
The mobile speeder is fitted with 5 work stations for tellers, a mini boardroom where officers can sit and strategize for the day, a water-proof display screen, speakers, kitchenette with a deep freezer and microwave, 4 bunkers where officers can rest and lavatories. The bus has ability to operate with multiple sources of power; electricity, solar with inverters in case of a rainy season and a generator. There are also internet routers to enable continuation of work.
URA is the second African tax authority after Kenya to launch this kind of automobile to drum up efforts to grow the tax register to at least 2.5 million value taxpayers and aim at collecting this year’s revenue target of UGX 21.6 Trillion.
The Tujenge bus has intensified tax education, register expansion and cleaning, targeted filing ratio analysis, tax advisory services and stakeholder engagements.
It has combed both remote and urban areas in Kamuli, Iganga, Mbale, Soroti, Kampala, Luweero, Nakaseke, Kagadi, Kasese, Mubende, Kyegegwa and Kyenjojo districts while registering taxpayers that were not directly contributing to the national revenue basket.
While covering kilometres upon kilometres, taxpayers are taught the dynamics of taxation, their responsibilities, rights and obligations. Ordinarily, the bus parks in a destined area and opens office to transact business like any URA office. Usually, there’s a team of URA officers that make door-to- door visits to businesses that cannot visit the bus station.
These deliberate efforts to reach every taxpayer have yielded revenue worth
UGX 264,702,930 from the generated assessments with taxpayer registrations amounting to 4174 taxpayers from July 2021 to February 2022.
At the commissioning of this office, the Commissioner General, John R Musinguzi noted that Tujenge Uganda will fill a big gap with the potential to exceed the goal to expand the tax register. The bus provides comprehensive tax education and information to promote voluntary compliance.
With the goal of reaching all taxpayers in all corners of Uganda, URA plans to secure three more mobile tax offices so that each of the major regions has a bus allocated. These will intensively reach out and educate all Ugandans on the importance of paying taxes.
Aside of mobile bus services, URA also does door-to-door outreach, develops and publishes tax content, conducts online tax engagements, serialized tax drama, financial literacy programs, radio and TV awareness, tax clinics and workshops all aimed at advancing tax knowledge.
The author works with URA ’s Public & Corporate Affairs
I want to register my self too,where u located today
Dear Joseph,
The Bus is a Mobile Service, we get you where you are. What exactly do you want to register for, so we can guide.
Regards