KRA outsources renewal of driving licence

Drivers can now renew licences at the 54 National Bank of Kenya branches after the tax collector outsourced the service due to congestion at the Times Tower headquarters.

The Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) has appointed the bank to collect fees for renewing driving licences and issuing renewal stickers.

“This approach is built on the premise that easing tax compliance leads to enhanced collection as taxpayers find it easier to comply,” said John Njiraini, the KRA commissioner-general.

“We are also developing a platform to facilitate the use of mobile money options for payments in respect of the renewal of driving licences,” Mr Njiraini said on Monday.

The decentralised system went live on Monday after successful piloting in Nairobi and Mombasa from May.

More income

“We have been renewing on average 2,600 driving licences daily,” said Sheikh Ahmed Munir, the managing director of NBK.

The service will also help the lender, which already collects stamp duty, land rent, customs and excise taxes on behalf of KRA, to earn more income in the form of commissions.

“We are discussing how much we will pay for this service and we’ll soon sign a service-level agreement,” KRA said in a statement.

Mr Njiraini said KRA will adopt technology and sub-contract some services to third parties as part of reforms.

KRA runs an online registration of Personal Identification Number (PIN), electronic lodgement of custom entries and a 24-hour document processing centre at its headquarters.

The tax collector is set to roll out a new electronic filing portal in December through which tax returns and payments can be done, complete with a payments system to allow for card and mobile money payments.