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The Zambia Revenue Authority (ZRA) could raise its 2026 revenue collections by K34 billion to K203.6 billion if taxpayer compliance improves by 20 percent, Commissioner General Dingani Banda has said.
Banda said ZRA was currently projected to collect K169.6 billion by the end of 2026, but closing compliance gaps could generate significantly more revenue without increasing tax rates.
Speaking during the launch of the Medium-Term Revenue Strategy (MTRS) 2027–2031 in Lusaka on Wednesday, Banda said a five percent improvement in compliance could push projected collections to K178.1 billion, while a 10 percent improvement could raise them to K186.6 billion.
“Improving compliance by five, 10 and 20 percent could increase projected actual collections to K178.1 billion, K186.6 billion and K203.6 billion, respectively,” Banda said.
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He said ZRA would need to improve compliance by at least 10 percentage points to reach its 2026 revenue target of K185 billion.
Banda said sustained improvements in compliance could also help Government close the revenue gap of between two and four percent of GDP identified under the MTRS without raising tax rates.
He said ZRA’s revenue target had risen from K58.7 billion in 2020 to K185 billion in 2026, while net collections increased from K83.9 billion in 2021 to K160.6 billion in 2025.
However, Banda said tax evasion, under-declaration of income, fraudulent Value Added Tax (VAT) claims, smuggling and the growth of informal economic activities continued to limit revenue collection.
He said closing these gaps would be critical to expanding the tax base and increasing domestic revenue.
Banda said improving compliance would allow government to collect more from the existing tax base and reduce pressure for additional tax measures.
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