THE LAW

“Where the Commissioner has refused an application under a tax law, the notice of refusal shall include a statement of reasons for the refusal.”

ANALYSIS

Local Productions Kenya Ltd. vs. Commissioner of Domestic Taxes (Tax Appeal No. 50, 2017) eKLR that:

“Section 49 of the Tax Procedures Act obliges the Kenya Revenue Authority to give a statement of reasons for refusal decisions. This is to be interpreted through the prism of the provisions of Article 47 of the Constitution, which is the pillar of the right to fair administrative action. In this regard, the Kenya Revenue Authority acted In violation of the right to fair administrative action contrary to Section 4 of the Fair Administrative Action Act which stipulates that every person has the right to be given written reasons if an administrative decision would affect them adversely.”

In Joseph Murithi Ndirangu T/A Ndirangu Hardware vs. Commissioner of Domestic Taxes (Tax Appeal No. 202 of 2018), The High Court ruled that an Objection Decision made by the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) is inadequate  if it fails  to provide written reasons for reje...