‘All deducted E-Levy must be refunded immediately’ – GRA warns charging entities

The Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) has ordered all financial institutions, mobile money operators, and other charging entities to immediately refund any E-Levy deductions made on transactions from April 2, 2025, onward.

The directive follows the official abolition of the controversial 1% Electronic Transfer Levy (E-Levy) after President John Mahama assented to the Electronic Transfer Levy Act, 2022 (Act 1075) and its amendment, Act 1089.

The E-Levy, which had been a major point of contention since its introduction, is now officially scrapped.

But while Ghanaians celebrate the removal of the tax, the GRA is making it clear: any wrongful deductions must be refunded immediately—or face the consequences.

The GRA’s directive is firm: any institution that fails to process refunds promptly will face sanctions.

The regulatory body has instructed all charging entities to cease applying the 1% E-Levy charge immediately on all electronic transactions, expedite refunds for any deductions made from April 2, 2025 and submit reports of all refunds processed to the GRA for accountability.

In a statement, Edward Apenteng Gyamerah, Commissioner of the Domestic Tax Revenue Division, warned that compliance checks would be conducted regularly to ensure that no institution tries to hold onto unlawfully deducted funds.

“Failure to comply with these directives constitutes an offence, and sanctions will be imposed as prescribed by law,” he cautioned.

To prevent further deductions, the GRA Electronic Transfer Levy Management and Assurance System (ELMAS) has been reconfigured to automatically return a “no charge” response on all transactions.

This means that from April 2, 2025, no E-Levy should be deducted on any mobile money, bank transfer, or other electronic transactions.

While customers are entitled to immediate refunds for wrongful deductions, the GRA also reminded charging entities that they must settle all outstanding E-Levy payments for transactions conducted before April 2.

To ensure full compliance, the GRA has warned of severe penalties for any charging entity that fails to follow the directives. Institutions are also required to maintain electronic transfer records for at least six years as per Section 27(3) of the Revenue Administration Act, 2016 (Act 915).

They are to continue posting electronic transactions to ELMAS until further notice and also adhere to strict reporting guidelines set by the GRA.

With the abolition of the E-Levy now in full effect, any delay in processing refunds will not be tolerated.

The GRA has set up an E-Levy Technical Support Team to assist with compliance, but it has made it clear: there will be no excuses.

The Authority encourages anyone who notices wrongful deductions to immediately report the issue to their service provider and demand a refund.

“Any failure to refund deducted funds should be reported directly to the GRA,” it added.

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