Tribunal curbs KRA's power to reopen ‘expired’ tax records

The Tax Appeals Tribunal has barred the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) from reopening tax assessment files older than five years without proof of fraud, handing Coca-Cola bottler Almasi Bottlers a partial victory in a Sh34.2 million excise duty dispute. The tribunal affirmed KRA's authority to enforce inflation-adjusted excise rates after court orders suspending them were lifted. It rejected Almasi's challenge to the rates but agreed that KRA exceeded its statutory powers by relying on records older than five years without alleging fraud or tax evasion.