The Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) has assured Ghanaians that the revenue administration reform to improve the country’s revenue mobilization and collection will be fully completed in June 2026.
According to the authority, the reform is intended to overhaul the VAT system for simplicity and fairness, while scrapping unpopular levies like E-Levy and COVID-19 Levy. It is also introducing digital tools (E-VAT) for efficiency, and broadening the tax net by bringing more informal businesses into compliance through higher registration thresholds and support schemes, aiming to boost revenue while easing burdens on citizens and businesses.
The reform process began in early 2025 with the scrapping of the levies, a unified VAT rate reduction to 20 percent, the removal of cascading GETFund/NHIL, and the abolishing of the VAT Flat Rate Scheme (VFRS) for clearer compliance.
The reform process also continued the implementation of the E-VAT, and the shutdown of shops and businesses that had not complied with GRA’s tax policies. GRA is, however, poised to commence officially and effectively the implementation of its new tax reforms on January 1, 2026.
Compliance to Close Ghana’s Large VAT Gap
The Ghana Revenue Authority is committed to strengthening revenue administration to support the announced new VAT reform. Previous IMF technical assistance found that closing Ghana’s large VAT gap requires enhancing compliance through better risk management – enhanced audit, enforcement, and collection mechanisms – and digitalization of VAT’s collection and monitoring systems.
To this end, the government, through GRA, intends to enhance VAT compliance by updating VAT registration procedures, simplifying VAT return forms, automating return validation, and using e-invoicing data.
The objective of the broadened tax base compliance is to reduce tax load on households and small businesses, boost the digital and general economy, and improve tax collection efficiency.
Delayed Revenue Administration Reforms
During the IMF’s policy discussions, the Fund noted that implementation of key delayed revenue administration reforms continues to face challenges.
According to the IMF, the government of Ghana “completed the cleansing of the taxpayer registry and ledger data (end-June 2024 structural benchmark) as a prior action in November after having experienced significant delays due to capacity and resource constraints.”
The delays in finalizing administrative rules and legislative backing also delayed efforts to operationalize Ghana’s Independent Tax Appeals Board, ITAB (end-December 2024 structural benchmark). Significant progress, however, occurred in late 2025, with the Minister of Finance announcing full operation by January 2026, following the November 2025 completion of the Revenue Administration Act (Act 1029) framework.
The framework established Ghana’s first independent tax appeal body before the court. The revenue administration reform has now been restructured for complete implementation in three stages.
According to the IMF, the first stage covers key elements of the missed structural benchmarks, envisaging completion of the registration, filing, and payments modules for Corporate Income Tax, Personal Income Tax, and Value Added Tax by end-March 2026 (new Structural Benchmark).
Stage two will implement enforcement and analytics capabilities, while stage three will connect ITAB with the Integrated Customs Management System; both are expected by end-June 2026.
Enhancing Revenue Mobilization Via MTRS and EIFTA
The Medium-Term Revenue Strategy (MTRS) continues to guide the government’s efforts to enhance revenue mobilization over the medium term. The strategy is a comprehensive, country-led approach, often supported by the IMF and other partners, to reform tax systems and boost domestic revenue over a 4 to 6-year period.
The MTRS aims to increase tax revenue by broadening the tax base, minimizing tax avoidance, and ensuring a progressive tax system while promoting equity and transparency.
According to the IMF, GRA will “undertake a mid-implementation review of the MTRS with a view to assess progress compared to objectives—including the timeline and yield of the adopted reform—and identify timebound corrective actions.”
Following several delays, the new Extractive Industry Fiscal Regime Act (EIFRA) will be submitted to Parliament in February 2026. EIFRA is a draft legislation proposed to coordinate various taxes and charges, and regulate the fiscal aspects of agreements within the extractive industries. A similar act, the Extractive Industries Revenue Act, 2018, has been enacted in Sierra Leone.
The new EIFRA—which benefitted from IMF Technical Assistance—will promote a stable environment for investors and ensure a fair share of the revenues for Ghana.
These various reforms, from compliance to legislation, will further empower the GRA to effectively mobilize and collect revenue in 2026 to ensure that revenue targets are met.
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