Tanzania: TRA Uses App in Bid to Curb Counterfeit Stamps

Dar es Salaam — The Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA) in Kilimanjaro Region is now using a mobile phone application to confirm the genuineness of Electronic Tax Stamps (ETS) on spirits that are sold in some bars.

The application provides information on whether the ETS on the drink product was genuine or fake.

This follows a recent request by residents of Kilimanjaro and Arusha, asking the taxman to work with other state agencies to investigate the presence of fake tax stamps in the market.

The TRA regional manager for Kilimanjaro, Mr Gabriel Mwangosi, said yesterday the fake stamps will soon become a thing of the past because the ‘special devices’ have the capacity to verify the fake and genuine ones. “Some traders are buying these stamps from the streets without knowing if they are genuine or not,” he said.

Adding: “We have found some of them buying ETS stamps, which are not recognised by the TRA system. This is a major reason for us to come up with a tool that can help curb fakes,” he noted.

The taxman is friendly with traders because the two depend on each other, cautioning that those using the fake stamps will face the law.

“We provide them (traders) with education to ensure that they fulfil their responsibilities of paying appropriate taxes and on time in order to avoid unnecessary penalties,” said Mr Mwangosi.

He stressed the ETS are mandatory for all traders, cautioning them to refrain from cheating.

“With these verifying devices, I can assure you (traders) and the resi-dents that no one will use fake stamps,” he noted.

Recently, TRA in Kilimanjaro Region reported to have arrested a man, Mr Kimario, in a deliberate effort to dismantle the network of individuals who engage in the distribution of fake ETS.

“He was arrested at his home. He would pocket Sh10,000 on every 100 fake stamps he sold to manufacturers. At times, he would issue a Sh2,000 discount and sell at Sh8,000. This is sabotage of our economy and revenue collec-tion efforts,” said Mr Mwangosi last Wednesday.

The government announced plans to adopt the ETS system in June 2018 and the first phase was conducted on January 15, 2019 whereby stamps were installed on 19 companies that produce alcohol, wine and spirits.

ETS seeks to boost transparency in the collection of excise duty, value-added tax (Vat) and corporate tax from manufacturers.

The ETS system enables the government to use modern technology to obtain production data on a timely basis (real time) from manufacturers.