(Posted 06th December 2024)
Following sustained pressure from the tourism private sector has the Kenya Revenue Authority reversed course and exempted visitors to the country from declaring their IMEI number on arrival which from the beginning was a fine example of bureaucrats going bureaucrazy.
Tourism Cabinet Secretary Rebecca Miano was quoted to have said: “KRA has announced that tourists will NOT be required to declare their gadgets’ IMEI numbers upon arrival. Kenya’s strategic location as the gateway to East Africa positions it as a regional hub for tourism and business and must therefore remain easily accessible.”
This exemption comes after KRA’s directive in early November, which requires passengers entering Kenya to declare their mobile phones, including IMEI numbers, as a new tax compliance measure starting January 1, 2025.
The scheme is yet another attempt by Kenya’s tax man to spy on individuals via their phone transactions such as mobile money, to squeeze every last penny out of taxpayers’ pockets.
