Kenya faults Tanzania’s new tax, business rules
NAIROBI, Kenya, July 30 - The Kenyan government has raised alarm over fresh trade restrictions and tax measures introduced by Tanzania, warning that they Kenya breaking news | Kenya news today |..
✨ Key Highlights
The Kenyan government has expressed strong disapproval of new trade restrictions and tax measures implemented by Tanzania. These changes, part of Tanzania’s Finance Act 2025 and the Excise (Management and Tariff) Act 2019, are seen by Kenya as harmful to inter-regional trade and the overarching East African Community (EAC) integration agenda.
- Kenyan Trade and Industry Cabinet Secretary Lee Kinyanjui stated that the new measures, including an Industrial Development Levy and additional excise duties of between 10% and 15% on imported goods, make Kenyan products up to 65% more expensive in Tanzania.
- A new Business Licensing (Prohibition of Business Activities for Non-Citizens) Order, 2025, bans foreigners, including EAC citizens, from engaging in 15 business categories.
- Kenya has initiated bilateral engagements and is working through EAC mechanisms, including a directive from the Extraordinary Sectoral Council on Finance and Economic Affairs to the EAC Secretariat to audit all contravening taxes.
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East African Trade Developments and Disputes - July 2025
Kenya and Uganda signed eight new bilateral Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) in Nairobi, building on 17 existing agreements to strengthen cooperation across key sectors, with Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni and Kenyan President William Ruto witnessing the ceremony. Despite this progress, both leaders raised concerns over existing trade restrictions within East Africa. However, Kenya has strongly criticized new trade restrictions and tax measures implemented by Tanzania, including changes in their Finance Act 2025 and Excise (Management and Tariff) Act 2019, viewing them as detrimental to inter-regional trade and the East African Community (EAC) integration agenda. These Tanzanian measures are perceived to specifically lock out Kenyan firms.
