What be de 10% betting tax wey Ghana pass into law?
Ghana President Akufo-Addo sign three new tax bills wey Parliament pass into law.
De three new taxes, Excise Duty Amendment tax, de Growth and Sustainability Levy tax and de Income Tax Amendment Bill dey form part of government plans to generate revenue as de country dey go through economic crisis.
But among de three new taxes, de income tax amendment bill which dey impose 10% tax on lottery and sports betting winnings dey vex de youth.
Despite say youth group who dey call diaself Concerned Bettors of Ghana (CBOG), ask govment to withdraw de bill, Ghana Finance Minister, Ken Ofori Atta say de passage of de new taxes be key to de long awaited $3 billion IMF loan.
So what dey income tax amendment law dey say?
How de betting tax dey impact gamblers
De purpose of dis Income Tax Amendment Bill, 2022 be say dis dey amend de Income Tax Act, 2015 (Act 896).
Dis new law dey revise de income tax rates for individuals den also introduce additional income tax bracket.
De additional income tax bracket be de 10% betting tax.
End of Di one wey oda users dey read well well
With passage of dis tax bill into law, bettors go start pay 10% on every bet dem win.
If you win Ghc20,000 bet, govment go take Ghc2000 off your win which means your real cash out ne Ghc18,000.
De bet company go pay de 10% of 20,000 which be Ghc2000 to govment.
‘I dey survive on bet money’
Govment decision to widen de tax bracket go affect millions of youth for Ghana who dey make money from bet.
Since de introduction of sports betting in particular, most youth wey be unemployed dey depend on betting for money.
Hundreds dey gather for betting centers with dia bet slips dey check how teams dey perform, Collins be one of dem.
“De betting be de only way I dey survive, I dey pay my rent, feed myself and pay my bills all through bet’ he talk.
He however believe say de 10% tax be unfair sake of de youth dey use de bet money survive so why govment wan take share from am.
“I no get why govment wey know say we no get jobs do, only betting we dey take survive go come say dem wan 10% from our winning” Collins talk.
“I dey survive on bet money, that 10% govment wan collect go fit pay electricity bills or feeding for maybe a week, so dis go just frustrate me more.”
He believe say with di new tax, even wen you win bet, you for continue dey bet sake of de money sometimes no go reach what you wan use am for.
Out of 17 million internet users for Ghana in 2022, about 11.18 million people dey use internet to access sports betting sites, according to the Cyber Security Authority (CSA).
What dis dey mean be say Ghana govment go fit bring dis 11.18 million pipo into de tax bracket.
