GRA Seizes Products From Movenpick, Kempinski and Accra City Hotels

The Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) on Wednesday extended the ongoing excise tax stamp enforcement to hotels and restaurants which resulted in the confiscation of unstamped beverages from Kempinski, Movenpick Ambassador and Accra City hotels.

During an ongoing inspection exercise by the GRA, it emerged that majority of the products at the bar and storeroom of the hotels had no tax stamps. The GRA is yet to disclose the value of the products in connection to the various seized drinks.

The taskforce firstly went to Kempinski Hotel Gold Coast, where imported alcoholic beverages without the tax were seized from its bar and the beverage store, although a few of the products were affixed with stamps, many were not.

At Movenpick Ambassador and the Accra City Hotels, the stories were similar and although there were some initial resistance by authorities, the taskforce seized all alcoholic beverages without not affixed with the tax stamp.

GRA has warned retailers, shop owners and Ghanaians to stop buying and displaying items that have no tax stamps on them.

In an interview with the media, Head of the Task Force for at the GRA, Kwabena Apau Anto, said all hotels and restaurants will be monitored by the GRA to ensure they comply with the directive.

According the focus on the operation is on restaurants and hotels because these are places that people patronise their products well adding that, the Authority is keen in ensuring that anywhere such products are sold, stamps were affixed to them.

He said officers were divided into six teams and had been tasked to ensure compliance in all restaurants and hotels within Accra and Tema adding that, the operation would be extended to the other regions.

Mr Apau Anto said the GRA carried out the day’s exercise to also tell the public that it was not only the retail, wholesale shops or distributors who were to affix the stamps but anybody selling any of the affected products must have tax stamps affixed them.

He  revealed that, the seized items would be used to calculate penalties up to 300 per cent payable by the companies as the unpaid duties and taxes on them.