Parliament has approved the controversial Electronic Transfer Levy (E-Levy) Bill.
The House compromising of only the Majority group passed the Bill after the Minority staged a walkout during the Second Reading on Tuesday, March 29, 2022.
The second reading of the levy saw the bill being adopted at a reduced rate of 1.5% from the initial proposed rate of 1.75%.
The Finance Committee recommended approval of the bill and called on the House to suspend its standing orders and take it through all the stages in one day due to the urgency of the bill.
Minority MPs on the Finance Committee led by Ranking Member, Dr Cassiel Ato Forson, however, voted against the bill arguing it will further compound the hardships of the ordinary Ghanaian.
The E-levy is a new tax measure introduced by the government in the 2022 Budget on basic transactions related to digital payments and electronic platform transactions.
Proposal of the levy has been criticized by section of the Ghanaian public who insisted it will amount to double taxation.
The government, however, insisted the levy would widen the tax net as it could raise an additional GH¢6.9 billion in 2022.
