Importers & Exporters calls for COVID -19 levy to be abolished

Despite the government’s insistence of maintaining the COVID-19 Health Recovery Levy, the Importers and Exporters Association of Ghana, is calling for the immediate abolishment of the levy.

The importers and exporters argue that government must completely do away with the Covid -19 levy as well as the Special import levy and the financial recovery levy as they place undue burden on individuals and businesses.

“We cannot compromise that it should become part of government’s revenue target for the year. Government must think about the ordinary Ghanaian suffering at this point in time and should not impose the Covid levy,” said Sampson Asaki Awingobit, Executive Secretary of the Association.

“Not only are we requesting for the Covid levy to go off the books but we are also asking that government should also abolish the special import levy and the financial recovery levy. These are levies including the Covid levy that came with sunset clauses that means they have lived their usefulness thus they have to go off the books,” he added.

The Covid-19 Health Recovery Levy is a stand-alone levy applied to the gross value of taxable supplies of goods and services provided under the Standard Rate and VAT Flat Rate Schemes.

Meanwhile, some individuals and operators of small and medium enterprises in Accra are lamenting the negative impact the continuous payment of the Covid-19- Levy, is having on their businesses.

Sharing their thoughts on government’s stance of maintaining the Covid- 19 levy, some said,” it was only unfair but also an exploitation of the already struggling business community by the Akuffo Addo led government and therefore, needs to be scrapped”.

Credit: Citi Business News