Well, if you just received a URA Payment Registration Number (PRN) or ID, then, opting to pay via MTN Uganda’s Mobile Money service or Airtel’s Money transfer service becomes a perfect shortcut to take away from a bank queue.

To get started, all you need is your prescribed URA Payment number or TIN for whatever service you’re clearing. Then, open your Mobile money account via your telco’s general *165# shortcode which is constant on both MTN and Airtel.

Paying your URA tax using MTN Mobile Money

• Dial *165#
• Or *165*4#
• Select option 4 (Payments)
• From the new List, Select Fees and Taxes (option 5)
• Then, Choose URA (option 1)
• Select with PRN Payments (option1)
• Then, Enter your PRN (payment registration number)
• Choose Option 1 (Confirm Payment)
• Then, Approve payment by entering your 5 Digit PIN Code
• Done

Using the MYMTN App

• Download and Install the MYMTN (MTNMomo) App (If not installed)
• Login to the App with your PIN and OTP SMS Code
• From the Main Dashboard, choose bill Payments
• Then, Select Fees and Taxes from the Submenu
• Choose URA (option 1)
• Select PRN Payments
• Then, Enter your PRN (payment registration number)
• Then, Approve Payment by Clicking the Approve button
• Done

Paying your URA Tax Via Airtel Money

• Dial *185#
• Or *165*4#
• Select option 4 (Payments)
• From the list, Choose URA (option 7)
• Choose Pay Registered (option 1)
• Then, Enter your PRN (payment registration number) /
• Enter Amount you wish to pay
• Then, Approve payment by entering your 4 Digit PIN Code
• Done

Using the My Airtel App

• Download and Install the MY Airtel App (If not Installed)
• Open the My Airtel App
• From the main dashboard, choose Pay Bill
• Then Choose URA (identified with an Umbrella Icon)
• Enter your PRN( Payment registration number)
• Then Enter Amount to pay
• Approve Payment by entering your 4digit Pin Code
• Done

All in All, you need a URA TIN Number to make payments attached to your Tax Identification Number (TIN). Once a PRN (payment registration number) is assigned to your account, you can then enter the digits to your mobile money account to successfully pay your Taxes.

In August 2016, URA issued MTN with an assessment of UGX 326,996,917,906 for unpaid taxes arising between the period 2011-2014. By Civil Suit 986 of 2016, MTN challenged the assessment in the High Court and a prolonged re-examination of the available evidence ensued.

This resulted in-to a partial consent judgment in June 2018 in favor of the telco, attarcting a revision of the assessment amount to UGX 24,273,771,472.

This residual amount was subject to the interpretation of a technical issue i.e. whether the taxable value of excise duty on airtime was to be charged on usage or at the point of sale, which was referred to the Tax Appeals Tribunal vide TAT Application 8 of 2019.

During the proceedings, both parties conducted further reconciliation and as of 3rd March 2020, the agreed reconciled possible tax, outstanding pending further considerations, was further significantly reduced. 

On 28 May 2020, the Tax Appeals Tribunal ruled that excise duty should be charged at the point of sale and accordingly upheld the assessment against MTN.

To prevent an overpayment of the reconciled amount, which is significantly lower than UGX 24,273,771,472, MTN on 29 May 2020 obtained an interim order against the enforcement of the several agency notices issued by URA. 

At the moment, MTN is studying the TAT ruling and taking advice on possible implications. Once the telco makes a decision on its stand with the authority, it has confirmed that a fair, legal, and ethical move will be taken to comply with any future notices.

So in case, you don’t have an active Tax Identification Number (TIN) yet! then here is how you can register or signup for one online without worrying about any prolonged ques at a physical URA office.

First things first, Signing up for a TIN number requires you to be an active citizen of Uganda meaning you must have a valid National ID card to prove your identity. Secondly, age matters in the exercise and its only adults that can own a TIN number and ready to pay taxes implying you must be 18years and above. With those 2 qualifications here is a short of the whole TIN registration process.

1. Visit the URA Website

• Visit the main URA website.
• Find and click the eServices menu

2. Under e-Services Download a TIN registration form

eServices is a tab located on the URA main website portal with Stamp Duty, Motor vehicle clearance, Payments and tax registration forms attached under the services list. While on the page:

• Click on the Individual registration option under registration for Taxes
• Download a new TIN registration form.

3. Fill In The Form and ReUpload it to the URA website

After downloading a TIN registration form from the eServices page, Fill in the form and re-upload it to the same location of download by completing the security captcha and accepting the URA terms and conditions.

4. Check your Email, and visit a URA branch to collect your new TIN

The last step towards getting your new TIN number is double checking for an email from URA or heading to a physical URA branch and present your printed slip of uploaded documents to the reception and have your new URA TIN number.

For business or Non-Individuals, the TIN registration process is a duplicate of the individual path above with no twists but rather a level up for a valid registered business name filled in the downloaded forms.

As Airtel money continues to rise as the most popular head to head MTN Mobile Money alternative, its new URA integration means users won’t have to battle with overdue payments, but simply dial *185*4# to clear their URA taxes in time before any late payment penalties rise up.

During the partnership reveal between Airtel and URA publicized on the telco Facebook page, the Airtel Chief Commercial Officer Amit Kapur braced the new integration as one that will ship ease and convenience in tax payments by Airtel customers. This means every Airtel customer will only need an active TIN number in order to clear their URA dues without worrying about hailing a boda/taxi to the nearest branch/office.

Even when Over the Top (OTT) tax is still active in Uganda and is also payable via Airtel money, the new integration only caters for the high-end Tax Identification Number (TIN) URA taxes and not any other subscriber tariffs. So, the new Airtel Money-URA payments option accessible via *185*4# will only cater for businesses and pending tax payments leaving out the OTT craze.

Basically, the new payments solution by Airtel comes at a time when signs of its charges free payments portal dubbed as Airtel Money Pay show an official rollout this year with the same clearance mechanism as the popular MTN Momo Pay. So, the new URA integration clearly shows another layer of digital inclusion which will see analog services erased from existence in a fast pace timeline anytime 5G sets an initial step-in.

While mobile money tax was addressed as an evil tax to the economy by several protesters. URA’s collected tax shows high compliance by mobile money users in Uganda at a time when telecoms still collect a 1% tax off Withdraws shuttering the 0.5% dream. More so, Parliament is expected to have a joint sitting over the tax policy which has so far garnered billions of shillings off mobile transactions inclusive of sending and withdraws

In a story by the Daily monitor, URA has managed to score the ultimate UGX 103billion for the past 3 months, meaning July, August, and September eliminating October. However, this means that by 2019, URA would have collected over UGX 206 billion if the compliance rate remains static. On the other hand, OTT tax collections have not been shared yet with a projection of the expected targets by 2019 and past 3 months collections

As VPNs continue to populate every now and then on smartphone stores, mobile money tax is one solution which has only had alternatives and Zero tolerance to bypassing tricks. In addition, the collected tax still raves at 1% and nobody knows when the 0.5% will apply on mobile money withdraws only. Nonetheless, what do you think about the hit URA targets, Share with us your opinions below.