Finance Bill passed, awaiting President’s assent
By Mercy Mwai, June 20, 2025The Finance Bill 2025 that has proposed revenue raising measures to fund the 2025/2026 budget is now headed to President William Ruto for assent after lawmakers approved it yesterday.
MPs passed the Bill with amendments as had been recommended by the departmental committee on Finance and National Planning chaired by Molo MP Kuria Kimani.
The committee proposed deletion of a number of controversial clauses in a bid to avoid a backlash similar to the one witnessed last year that was being pushed by youths calling themselves Gen Z.
The controversial clauses deleted include the proposals by Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) to access personal data for tax compliance, the proposal seeking to revise the Pay As You Earn (PAYE) tax bands and rates as well as the suggestion to review of statutory deductions, such as the National Social Security Fund (NSSF), and housing levy citing an ongoing review by the National Treasury.
The lawmakers approved the Bill by acclamation after they concluded debating and making amendments on Wednesday evening. The third reading stage of the bill was moved by Kilifi North MP Owen Baya on behalf of the Finance and National Planning chairperson and Molo MP Kuria Kimani.
The move came just hours after the MPs termed the Bill as one of the best compared to the previous ones as it only seeks to increase the tax base to enable the government to collect more.
The Finance Bill of 2025 seeks to raise Sh25 billion compared to the Finance Act of 2022 that had a projected to raise revenue of Sh22 billion, the Finance Act of 2023 had proposed to raise Sh211 billion, the Finance Bill of 2024 had intention to raise Sh244 billion while the Tax Laws Amendment Act had proposed to raise Sh449 billion.
Kitui Rural MP David Mwalia although supporting the Bill called for removal of the said clause saying it will be to be misused.
He however termed the Bill as the fairest as it only seeks to raise about Sh25 billion compared to the previous ones.
“On the tax procedure act, this provision as my chair has said this one as a committee, we said that this one can be misused,” he said.
Kuria explained that the committee had thoroughly scrutinised the said provision allowing KRA to access data and after extensive public engagement and consultation with stakeholders, found that this proposal fails to meet the constitutional standard set under the Constitution which guarantee the rights to privacy.
He also noted that the Data Protection Act of 2019 sets out clear and limited grounds under which access to personal data may be exempted from certain protections.
Further, he said that Section 60 of the Tax Procedures Act, already provides the commissioner or an authorized officer with sufficient powers to obtain necessary information for tax administration subject to court issued warrants which safeguard strikes a balance between tax enforcement and protection of individuals.