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Section 3

Interpretation 

(1) In this Act, except where when the context otherwise requires-

“accounting officer” has the meaning assigned under the Public Finance Management Act, 2012;

“advance assessment” means an advance assessment made by the Commissioner under section 30;

“amended assessment” means an amended assessment made by the Commissioner under section 31;

“appealable decision” means an objection decision and any other decision made under a tax law other than-
  • (a) a tax decision; or 
  • (b) a decision made in the course of making a tax decision; 
“assessment” means a self-assessment, default assessment, advance assessment, or amended assessment, and includes any other assessment made under a tax law;

“authorised officer”, in relation to a tax law, means the Commissioner or an officer appointed by the Commissioner under the Kenya Revenue Authority Act;

“Authority” means the Kenya Revenue Authority established under the Kenya Revenue Authority Act;

“Cabinet Secretary” means the Cabinet Secretary for the time being responsible for matters relating to finance;

“Commissioner” means the Commissioner-General appointed under the Kenya Revenue Authority Act;

“company” means-
  • (a) a company as defined in the Companies Act or a corporate body formed under any other written law, including a foreign law; or
  • (b) an association, whether incorporated or not, formed outside Kenya that the Cabinet Secretary has, by order, declared to be a company for the purposes of this Act; 
“controlling member” has the meaning assigned to it in section18(4)(b);

“default assessment” means a default assessment made by the Commissioner under section 29;

“document” includes-
  • (a) a book of account, record, paper, register, bank statement, receipt, invoice, voucher, contract or agreement, tax return, Customs declaration, or tax invoice; or 
  • (b) any information or data stored on a mechanical or electronic data storage device; 
“due date” means the date by which taxes are due and payable as specified in the respective tax laws or such other date as the Commissioner may specify in a notice;

“excise duty” means excise duty imposed under the Excise Duty Act;

“income tax” means income tax imposed under the Income Tax Act;

“international organisation” means an organisation with international membership, scope or presence and the membership are sovereign powers or the governments of sovereign powers;

No. 3 of 2012
 “Land Registrar” means Chief Land Registrar, County Land Registrar and Land Registrars appointed under section 12 and 13 of the Land Registration Act, 2012

“late payment interest” means interest imposed under section 38;

“late submission penalty” means a penalty imposed under section 83;

“licensed person” means a person registered or licensed under a tax law;

“tax agent” means a person licensed as a tax agent under section 20;

“limited partnership” means
No. 42 of 2011
  • (a) a limited liability partnership registered under the Limited Liability Partnerships Act, 2011; or
No. 16 of 2012
  •  (b) a foreign limited partnership within the meaning in the Partnerships Act, 2012;
“objection decision” has the meaning in section 51(8);

“official language” means Kiswahili or English;

“penalty” means a penalty imposed under a tax law;

“person” includes an individual, company, partnership, limited partnership, association of persons, trust, National Government, foreign government, political subdivision of the National Government or foreign government, or an international organisation;

“personal identification number” or “PIN” means the personal identification number issued under section 12;

“political subdivision”, in relation to a government, means a state, provincial, county, local, or other government at a level lower than the national government;

Finance Act, 2018 Effective 1st July 2018
“prescribed form” has the meaning assigned to it in section 70 section 71;

“refund decision” means a decision referred to in section 47(3);

 “relative”, in relation to an individual, means-
  • (a) an ancestor, a descendant of any of the grandparents, or an adopted child, of the individual; 
  • (b) an ancestor, a descendant of any of the grandparents, or an adopted child of a spouse of the individual; or 
  • (c) the spouse of the individual or of any person specified in paragraph (a) or (b); 
“reporting period” means-
  • (a) for the income tax, the year of income or, when section 27 of the Income Tax Act applies, the accounting period of the taxpayer; 
  • (b) for withholding tax under the Income Tax Act, the period for which the deduction of tax relates; 
  • (c) for Value Added Tax- 
    • (i) for a registered person, each calendar month; or 
    • (ii) for an importer, the time of the import; 
    • (iii) for withholding tax under the Value Added Tax Act, the time for payment for the taxable supplies; 
  • (d) for excise duty-
    • (i) for a licensed person, each calendar month; or 
    • (ii) for an import of excisable goods, the time of import; or 
    • (iii) in the case of an advanced assessment, the period stated in the notice of assessment; 
  • (e) for any other tax imposed under a tax law, the period for which the tax is charged; 
“self-assessment” means an assessment made by a taxpayer or his representative under section 28;

“self-assessment return” means a self-assessment return submitted by a tax payer or his representative in accordance with a tax law;

“spouse”, in relation to an individual, means an individual who is married to the first-mentioned individual under any system of law;

“tax” means-
 “tax avoidance” means a transaction or a scheme designed to avoid liability to pay tax under any tax law.

“Tax Compliance Certificate” means a certificate issued by the Commissioner if satisfied that the person has complied with the tax law in respect of filing returns and has paid all the tax due based on self-assessment or has made an arrangement with the Commissioner to pay any tax due;

“tax decision” means-
“tax law” means-
“tax representative”, in relation to a taxpayer, means a person who is the tax representative of the taxpayer under section 15;

“tax return” means a return required to be submitted under a tax law and includes the following-

“taxpayer” means a person liable for tax under a tax law whether or not they have accrued any tax liability in a tax period;

No. 40 of 2015
“Tribunal” means the Tax Appeals Tribunal established under the Tax Appeals Tribunal Act, 2013;

“trust” means-
  • (a) a trust within the meaning in the Trustee Act; or 
  • (b) an entity (other than a partnership, limited partnership, or company) created outside Kenya that has legal characteristics substantially similar to those of a trust settled or created in Kenya; 
“trustee” means a person recognized as trustee under the Trustee Act and includes a person who owes a fiduciary responsibility to an entity treated as a trust under paragraph (b) of the definition of “trust”;

“unpaid tax” means any tax that has not been paid by the due date or, if the Commissioner has extended the due date under section 33, the extended due date, and includes any late payment interest in respect of a tax liability;

No. 35 of 2013
“value added tax” means valued added tax imposed under the Value Added Tax Act, 2013; and

Cap. 167
“withholding tax” means tax that a person is required to withhold under the Income Tax Act or the Value Added Tax Act.


(2) For the purposes of this Act, the following are related persons-
  • (a) persons who are treated as related persons under section 13(8) of the Value Added Tax Act; or 
  • (b) an individual and a relative of the individual. 

(3) For the purposes of enforcement and collection of tax-
  • (a) late payment interest, penalty, fines, or any other imposition under a tax law shall be treated as tax; and 
  • (b) the person liable for the amount specified in paragraph (a) shall be treated as a taxpayer. 

(4) When this Act applies in respect of a tax law, any term not defined in this Act has the meaning assigned in that tax law.

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