The Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) has announced a major change to the annual income tax filing calendar, moving the deadline for individual taxpayers from June 30 to April 30.
The new deadline will take effect from January 1, 2027, following changes introduced under the Finance Act 2026.
The new law requires individual taxpayers to file their annual income tax returns by the end of the fourth month after the close of the year of income.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, September 8, KRA said the change would affect individual taxpayers and self-employed persons, who will now have until April 30 each year to submit their returns.
“The Finance Act 2026 has moved the deadline for filing Individual Income Tax Returns from the usual June 30 to April 30 from 2027 onwards,” KRA said, urging taxpayers to adjust their filing calendars accordingly.
The new timeline will apply to returns for the 2026 year of income and subsequent years.
Taxpayers will therefore need to prepare and submit their returns earlier than they have traditionally done.Companies, however, will not be affected by the change.
KRA said corporate taxpayers will continue filing their returns by the last day of the sixth month following the end of the year of income, meaning the June 30 deadline will remain in place for companies.
The shift is also expected to help address the annual pressure experienced by KRA during the final days of the tax filing period.
In previous years, the June 30 deadline has often resulted in a last-minute rush as millions of taxpayers attempt to access the iTax platform and submit their returns.
The heavy traffic has sometimes caused system slowdowns, technical problems and periods of downtime, leaving some taxpayers struggling to file their returns before the deadline.
By bringing forward the deadline for individuals to April 30, KRA expects filing activity to be spread over a longer period, reducing congestion on its systems and giving taxpayers more time to complete their obligations.
Taxpayers should also take the new deadline seriously because failure to file on time attracts penalties. Individuals face a penalty of 5 per cent of the tax due or Ksh2,000, whichever is higher.
For companies and other non-individual taxpayers, the penalty remains 5 per cent of the tax due or Ksh20,000, whichever is higher.
The new filing calendar means Kenyans will have to adjust their tax planning and ensure their annual returns are prepared well before the April 30 deadline.
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