Tax Advisory
Tax for individuals, businesses and other organizations is wide, deep and complex. The ever changing tax regulatory regimes attributable to constant tax reforms designed to standardize the global tax regulatory framework, have brought with them many tax challenges for businesses and other organizations. These challenges are particularly felt in small and medium size organizations with little or no in house capacities to respond to them. We recognize and appreciate the difficulties encountered by our valued clients in this area and have in response established a well-staffed Statutory Compliance and Tax Consulting Unit to assist in scaling these taxation related challenges. We further understand that it is not all about compliance, but ensuring you minimize your tax liability within the tax laws and regulations. We help you in tax planning.
Our tax department ensures that clients are tax compliant both locally and internationally. We have skilled and experienced tax professionals, with expertise in all areas of taxation, to ensure that you are business tax compliant by anticipating the strategic opportunities and risks that may impact your tax situation. We assist our clients to file their tax returns, compute and advise on payment of installment tax and advance tax. We also coordinate with the revenue authorities on tax assessments on behalf of our clients.
For more information, please contact: info@krestonkm.com.
Other services
Our tax advisory services
Tax compliance
All persons operating in Kenya, both individuals and non- individuals, profit making and nonprofit making, resident and non-resident are required by set regulations to comply with the particular tax obligations applicable to them. Knowing and discharging particular tax obligations in a timely and accurate manner is critical in mitigating tax risks. Improper handling and non-reporting on applicable tax obligations often attract excessive tax assessments and imposition of penalties, fines and interest. At Kreston KM we are committed to ensuring that our clients remain fully compliant with their tax obligations and minimally exposed to tax risks by offering the following taxation services, among others:-
- Preparation, computation & filing of self-assessment income tax returns in accordance with tax legislations and regulations.
- Computation and advisory on installment vs minimum tax payments
- Preparation and filing of VAT, PAYE, Withholding, excise duty, monthly rental income tax and other applicable tax returns.
- Application and processing of Tax Compliance Certificates
- Timely notification and advice on tax payable and the due dates and assistance on the same
- Attending to queries raised by the tax authority in relation to the client’s tax affairs.
In addition, we also handle our client’s other statutory obligations like the NSSF & NHIF. We have set up and implemented our internal standards and procedures that ensure we meet your tax compliance expectations while our focus is to exceed those expectations.
Tax health check reviews
In many jurisdictions, including Kenya, taxation is largely accounted for on a self-assessment basis. Because of this arrangement, the tax authority constantly reviews tax declarations made through the self-assessments, and data review from third parties in an effort to independently validate the declarations made through those self-assessment returns. Validation involves the authority seeking to find out if all the tax legislations and regulations have been complied with in making the self-assessment declarations. There is therefore a huge potential tax risk where the regulations are found not to have been followed. At Kreston KM, we assist the client to mitigate such risks by conducting periodic tax health checks that help to identify and rectify any non-compliances with applicable tax laws, rules and regulations. We plan and execute our tax health check activities in a manner that helps to identify any areas of tax planning to minimize your tax obligations within the law. Tax obligations that often fall within the purview of our tax health check in Kenya includes, among others:–
- Corporation taxes at resident and non-resident rates
- Deemed interest
- VAT
- Withholding VAT
- Withholding taxes
- Fringe benefits tax
- Stamp duties
- Thin capitalization
- Transfer pricing
- Reverse VAT
- Customs duty
- Excise duty
Tax planning and advocacy
Taxes are certain, as set out by existing regulations and we can only but plan for them. Tax planning is about arranging organizational transactions in a most tax efficient manner within the legal and regulatory framework. Tax planning can also help greatly in pricing of projects by shifting tax liability in tax obligations like VAT to ensure profitability. Indeed, failure to tax plan could potentially plunge an organization/business into unnecessary tax expenses that could have been saved. Our tax experts at Kreston KM are well versed with tax legislations and will help you to tax plan while remaining compliant.
VAT refund audit
The tax authority makes tax refunds to taxpayers for tax items to include, VAT excess credits arising from making zero rated supplies, tax paid in error and bad debts. For application and processing, the tax payer has to satisfy the tax authority that he/she has met the criteria required to allow refund processing. Based on this, there is need for VAT audit to ease the process of refunds. At Kreston KM we assist in VAT audit for refund purposes and follow up on the same.
Tax agency services for resident and non-resident clients
A tax agent prepares and submits returns on behalf of the other person, liaises with the authority on behalf of another person in matters relating tax and advice and represent another person before the tax authority on matters tax.
Non-resident clients operating in Kenya may choose to have a tax agent in Kenya to account for their taxes where legislation allows.
In addition, with the coming into effect of the digital service tax law, non-resident persons without a permanent establishment operating in the digital market space have an option of appointing a tax representative in Kenya.
Application of non-resident persons personal identification number (PIN) for KRA purposes may need an agent for the processing purposes.
At Kreston KM, we have a well experienced team whose members are registered as tax Agents with KRA enabling them to act as tax agents or tax representatives to facilitate clients in matters taxation.
Transfer pricing
Transfer pricing are the rules and regulations for pricing transactions between related bodies mostly used for establishments in the country i.e. subsidiaries transacting with their holding companies situated outside the country.
The authority has set these regulations to mitigate profit base erosion and operations in non-preferential tax regimes.
Kreston KM has a team well versed with the legislation on the same to help clients comply with transfer pricing regulations.