NAIROBI, Kenya, Feb 29 – Attorney General (AG) Justin Muturi has warned the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) against deducting the controversial Housing Levy after it was declared unconstitutional.
In a letter addressed to KRA Commissioner General Humphrey Wattanga, the AG stated that the authority should stop collecting the contentious levy, citing a lack of a legal framework to support the deduction from salaried employees.
“The upshot of this is that there is no legal basis on which the housing levy as provided in section 84 of the Finance Act can be implemented,“ said AG.
He noted that there is no legal basis for the levy deduction to be implemented based on the Court of Appeals’ ruling that upheld the High Court decision that declared the housing levy unconstitutional last month.
“Therefore our considered opinion is that as of January 26 2024 there is no legal provision that enables the collection and administration of the housing levy,” he stated.
On February 12, 2024, Wattanga wrote a letter to the AG seeking guidance on the government’s position in regards to the collection of the housing levy.
The High Court on November 28, 2023, declared the Housing Levy illegal, citing that it was discriminatory as it secluded workers in the informal sector.
Three judges, including Lawrence Mugambi, Christine Meoli, and David Majanja of the High Court, ruled that the introduction of the Housing Levy through amendment of the Employment Act by Section 84 of the Finance Act, 2023, lacks a comprehensive legal framework.
