The Registrar of Companies has given notice that the Beneficial Owner (BO) E-Register has been operationalised with effect from 13th October 2020. This is pursuant to the Companies (Beneficial Owner Information) Regulations; 2020. Every company is now required to keep a register of its beneficial owners and submit a copy of it to the Registrar… Read more »
Posts By: MGK Consulting
Tax Returns Audits by KRA
Background In a bid to meet revenue targets that it has persistently missed in recent years, the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) has in the recent weeks been undertaking comprehensive compliance checks on all taxpayers. The commissioner through the authority’s investigation enforcement unit is keen on nabbing tax cheats be they individuals or corporates through compliance… Read more »
Waiver of tax penalties and interest by KRA
Background In the course of filing tax returns, taxpayers find themselves in situations where they are not able to abide by the strict tax procedures and timelines both for monthly and annual tax returns. When this happens tax payers end up getting penalized either for filing taxes late (Late filing) or for not filing at… Read more »
Budget 2020/21: The Highlights
Despite the uncertainties in the days ahead and how this is likely to impact the Kenyan economy significantly, The Cabinet Secretary for the National Treasury, Ukur Yatani unveiled the budget speech for the financial year 2020/2021 on the 11th of June 2020. The budget for this financial year is Ksh 2.7 Trillion. The budget whose… Read more »
Highlights of the 2020 Finance Act
Background President Uhuru Kenyatta on Tuesday 30th June 2020 signed into law the 2020/21 Budget, the 2020 Finance Bill and the 2019/20 Third Supplementary Budget. The 2020 Finance Bill which has now become law contains several amendments targeted at cushioning Kenyans from the adverse effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. The third 2019/20 supplementary budget of… Read more »
Managing VAT Inconsistencies
Background A large number of registered tax payers can confirm receiving VAT inconsistency reports generated by the iTax system. They usually come in the form of spreadsheets listing entries that are considered to be inconsistent and began with Value Added Tax (VAT) returns for the month of January 2019. The Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) introduced… Read more »
Changes in Tax Rates 2020
Background The President assented to The Tax Laws (Amendment) Act, 2020 and this was gazetted on 27th April 2020. This now brings into effect all the tax relief measures aimed at alleviating the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on individuals and businesses. We highlight the following changes in tax rates: Individual tax rates Rate On the… Read more »
2020 Tax Amendments
Background The President of Kenya issued a number of relief measures on 25th March 2020 to cushion the tax payers, businesses and investors from the COVID-19 impact. The aim is to increase disposable income for the people of Kenya. We highlight below the proposed changes; Income tax changes Corporation Tax Reduction of resident corporation income… Read more »
Firm Response to COVID-19 Pandemic
Following the outbreak of the corona virus in the world and now in Kenya and subsequent government pronouncements on the same, the firm has taken the following measures to safeguard the health of our staff and clients while ensuring that we continue delivering services to our clients. Personal health and safety The staff have been… Read more »
Customer Service Training
This was an in-house team training conducted in early 2020. It was themed “Client Service Excellence’. It was aimed at sensitizing staff and equipping them with skills to go the extra mile to ensure all our clients enjoy working with us are delighted by our services.
Digitization of the Company Registry
The Companies Registry is responsible for the registration of business names and limited companies in Kenya. The Registry was digitized and migrated to online registry in October 2017. Besides making it easier to incorporate new businesses, the digitization exercise aims at increasing transparency and faster access to company registry services. Subsequently, manual filing and processes… Read more »
How Often Should Business Accounts be Monitored?
Joshua Kamau has operated a mid-sized internet service providing business in Nairobi since 2007. “I had an accountant in charge of making collections from clients. The same worker also ensured clients had internet and was in charge of disconnections in case of payment default,” he says. Everything went on smoothly until the accountant tendered his resignation…. Read more »
Can lessons from personal cash flow management apply in a business?
Whether it’s by scribbling on the back of an envelope or through elaborate worksheets, the fact is each one of us plans for their personal cash. Spending is determined by personal goals (short and long-term) of the individual, disposable cash available and priority of expenditure. Note that whether consciously or not, goals come first and… Read more »
Managing Cash Flow
‘Cash is King’, is an old saying which describes the importance of cash in running a business. It basically means that cash flow is at the heart of a business and is a vital element for success of any business. Good cash flow management entails ensuring that you have more incoming cash than outgoing. Positive… Read more »
Successfully Convert your Credit Sales into Cash
Many businesses sell on credit to their customers. The sales cycle is never complete until the customer pays for the goods or services supplied. The business needs to be aware of and establish mechanisms for managing the arising credit risk. Credit risk is the risk that the customer defaults and fails to make payment. Below… Read more »
Managing Cash Flow – Forecast
One tool that is very useful in effectively managing cash flow is a Cash Flow Forecast. A good forecast encourages you to think ahead and plan for ways to finance cash shortages or deploy surpluses before they occur. A cash flow forecast also helps in assessing the actual performance of the business against expectations. The… Read more »
Enhance Your Chances of Securing Business Financing
One common challenge perceived by SMEs is the general lack of support by banks. Business owners, as a result, tend to shun banks and go to great lengths to secure alternative financing for their businesses. But given the aggressive marketing of loan products by financial institutions, one tends to wonder whether it is the banks… Read more »
Selecting a Capital Structure for your Business
Capital is a necessary requirement to start up a business, operate and generate profits. Lack of capital may lead to business failure. A business can raise capital from the following main sources; debt, profits and sale of equity. The following are pros and cons of these sources of capital. Equity The main advantage of using… Read more »
Interpreting Financial Statements: The Income Statement
The Income Statement is a very useful tool for understanding a company’s performance. It is the most recognised financial statement because it shows whether the company is making profits or losses in a particular period e.g. month, quarter or year. It is also known as the profit and loss account. In this article, we took… Read more »