Zimra's unaccounted deposits cause tax woes

The Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (Zimra) received $101.54 billion in unaccounted deposits from clients in 2023, creating an administrative challenge that led to unnecessary penalties and interest on tax accounts. Several listed companies, such as Nampak Zimbabwe and Delta Corporation, have expressed concerns over the country's tax policies, describing them as unjust and burdensome. Nampak contested a $26.7 billion penalty, while Delta Corporation contested a US$54.8 million tax charge.

Acting auditor general Rhea Kujinga's audit report revealed that these unaccounted funds resulted from insufficient client payment details, leading to penalties and interest accumulation for some clients. The report also disclosed issues with private imports debt, removal-in-transit entries, and temporary import permits.

The private imports debt included entries made in advance by clients amounting to $15.83 billion and US$8 million, with some entries dating back to 2015. The removal-in-transit entries had a potential duty of US$7.1 million, with some entries also dating back to 2015. Additionally, Zimra had 40,985 electronic temporary import permits and 19,719 manual temporary import permits for vehicles entering the country temporarily, with some entries dating back to 2013.

Kujinga noted that it was unclear whether the vehicles had exited the country or been localized, and the extent of duty payable if the vehicles were localized could not be ascertained.