The local economy experienced a downward trend in 2020 after the country was hit by the Coronavirus pandemic.
Since its wobbling state following the pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine War, the government implemented measures to put the economy back on a sound footing.
One of the measures deployed by the government to stabilise the economy was to seek financial assistance from the International Monetary Fund.
Additionally, the COVID-19 Levy was introduced as a means of burden-sharing to help the economy recover.
However, years after the pandemic, Ghanaians continue to pay this levy, and many have described it as a nuisance tax because it has outlived its purpose.
Speaking on this development on GhanaWeb TV’s BizTech program hosted by Ernestina Serwaa Asante, the Secretary General of the Ghana Federation of Labour, Abraham Koomson, stated that the COVID-19 Levy needs to be scrapped as soon as possible.
Also describing it as a nuisance tax, he said payment of the tax was causing more harm than good to both Ghanaians and the economy.
“It doesn’t make sense. They don’t know how to run an economy. If you know how to run an economy, you don’t impose such nuisance taxes that will not help you. Why are we still paying the COVID Levy? Sometimes, some economists will say the challenges are there, it is not only COVID, maybe with time, there may be another virus. It doesn’t make sense. So, you wish that diseases come to create problems for us?” he told the host of BizTech, Ernestina Serwaa Asante.
Koomson further stressed that, “the COVID Levy must go immediately. Government does not even own much of the industries left in this country. They are all privately owned so if you impose such taxes, what will they do? They will look for another environment and relocate.”
But it would be recalled that at the second CEO’s Breakfast meeting in Accra on Thursday, May 16, 2024, the Assistant Commissioner of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), Dominic Naab, explained that the COVID Levy paid by Ghanaians is to settle the compounding debts the government incurred during the outbreak of the global pandemic.
He stated categorically that the Ghana Revenue Authority will continue to collect the COVID-19 Levy as it is enshrined in law.
“We have accumulated a lot of debts around the COVID period, and we haven’t been told that COVID is gone for good, so these are the reasons for which we still charge… For me, as long as COVID is in our law, we will collect it,” Dominic Naab said in response to why Ghanaians are still paying the COVID Levy post-pandemic.
The COVID-19 Health Recovery Levy was introduced in Ghana as a special levy to support the country’s expenditures.
Enacted by Parliament as Act 1068 on March 31, 2021, the levy imposes a 1% charge on the supply of goods and services made in Ghana, as well as on imports, excluding exempt goods or services.
The VAT is computed on the value of the taxable supply inclusive of NHIL, GETFund Levy, and the COVID-19 Levy.
The funds are collected by the Ghana Revenue Authority.
SA/AE
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