The Finance Minister-designate, Dr. Ato Forson has revealed that betting tax will be scrapped in the next budget.
He revealed this to the Appointments Commitee of Parliament during his ministerial vetting session at the Parliament of Ghana today, January 13, 2025, when he was asked how he intended to raise capital should he fulfill their party’s manifesto promise of scrapping bet tax.
He argued that the economic implication would be minimal as bet tax is reigning in below expectations – generating less than ¢50 million annually.
“Mr Chairman, some of the taxes are not bringing in any revenue that you should increase. For example, the betting tax is bringing in less than GH¢50 million a year. It’s a nuisance tax and scrapping GH¢50 million will not mean anything in a way that will affect the economy,” he stated.
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In August of 2024 during the launch of the NDC Party’s manifesto in Winneba, President John Mahama promised to remove certain obnoxious taxes including tax on betting, a campaign promise many believe resonated well within the youth community.
“First is resetting the economy for prosperity. In the first 120 days in office, we will hold a national economic dialogue to draw up a four-year fiscal consolidation plan. We would rationalize taxes, abolishing among others the obnoxious e-levy, the COVID levy and the 10% levy on bets winning,” he stated.