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BURS estimates VAT gap at 40%

Plugging gaps: Valashia
Plugging gaps: Valashia

Botswana's Value-Added Tax gap is estimated at approximately 40 percent, a number that means a significant portion of businesses that should be remitting the vital tax are not doing so, the acting BURS Commissioner General, Phodiso Valashia, has revealed.

Speaking at the Tax Pitso last week, the tax veteran said the gap meant that a substantial portion of revenue that should be funding national priorities is not being realised. He added that no system, law, or institution could address the situation on its own and rather a collective shift was required in how the nation engages and looks at tax.

Valashia said paying tax must be understood to be a national contribution, civic duty and a practical expression of patriotism that sustains public service, rather than a mere legal obligation.

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