BURS looks to tax global digital services providers
Tuesday, June 02, 2026 | 0 Views |
BURS Headquaters. PIC MORERI SEJAKGOMO
The tax agency is, therefore, seeking to collect approximately P450 million a year in revenue through the taxation. It follows the announcement that the Remote Service VAT Act will officially come into effect on June 1, 2026, introducing a 14% Value Added Tax (VAT) on digital and remote services provided by non-resident companies to customers in Botswana.
The move comes at a time when government is under increasing pressure to improve the efficiency of tax collection as the prolonged slump in diamond sales continues to negatively affect national budget revenues.
It is a clear signal that the government’s purse is empty and that our own behaviour has left veterinary officials fighting with one hand tied behind their backs. We have been here before. During COVID-19, many of us thought we knew better. We ignored simple rules, we carried on as if the danger was someone else’s problem, and the virus took lives and left our economy on its knees. We are still broke from that experience. Yet now, with FMD...