The Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) has offered a major reprieve to taxpayers following technical disruptions that marred the final day of the income tax return filing period.
In a public notice dated July 1, 2025, KRA announced a waiver of penalties and interest for late filing while extending the deadline to July 5, 2025.
The move comes after thousands of Kenyans encountered difficulties accessing the iTax system on June 30, 2025—the original filing deadline.
The platform experienced slowdowns and outages due to an overwhelming surge in traffic, leaving many unable to submit returns or make payments on time.
KRA acknowledged the situation and responded by invoking Section 89(5A)(b) of the Tax Procedures Act to provide relief.
“The Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) sincerely appreciates all taxpayers for turning out in large numbers to file their income tax returns for the period ending December 31, 2024,” the notice stated.
“Due to the high volume of taxpayers attempting to file their returns on 30th June, 2025, the system experienced technical difficulties that disrupted the normal functioning of the return filing and payment services, preventing a number of taxpayers from submitting their returns on time.”
This acknowledgement of the technical failures and the resulting waiver reflects KRA’s commitment to equity and service delivery in tax administration.
New deadline: July 5, 2025
To ensure fairness, KRA confirmed that taxpayers will now have until Friday, July 5, 2025, to file returns and settle any taxes due without incurring penalties or interest.
“Due to the high volume… a waiver of penalties and interest has been granted. The new deadline for filing returns and paying any tax due is 5th July, 2025,” the notice read.
KRA urged Kenyans to take advantage of the extension and ensure full compliance. “Kenyans are advised to file all their returns and pay any tax that is due before the expiry of the date specified.”
Earlier, in a notice issued Monday, June 30, 2025, on their X account, KRA confirmed the extension and announced longer operating hours to support the expected surge in filings.
“Tumefungua service lane! 24-hour extension up to tomorrow midnight to file and pay your returns! We have extended our working hours tomorrow to serve you better,” read part of the post.
Compliance reminder
The tax agency continues to encourage use of the iTax portal for filing and payment processes. The waiver applies strictly to those affected by the June 30 outage and is not an open-ended extension for habitual defaulters.
“We appreciate all taxpayers for turning out in large numbers to file their income tax returns,” KRA reiterated, underlining the broad impact of the system outage and the agency’s responsive measures.
As the July 5 deadline approaches, taxpayers are urged to act swiftly to avoid last-minute congestion and ensure compliance under the revised timeline.
