TPA 3

Objections, appeals and dispute resolution

1Scope and legal basis

Part VIII of the Tax Procedures Act (sections 50 to 56) sets the objection procedure and the route of appeal, and the Tax Appeals Tribunal Act 2013 establishes the Tribunal that hears appeals against the Commissioner's objection decisions, with further appeals to the High Court and the Court of Appeal on questions of law. The Tax Procedures (Amendment) Act 2024 excluded weekends and public holidays from the counting of objection and appeal days, and the Finance Acts of 2023 to 2025 refined the Tribunal's procedures, the 20% deposit rule for High Court appeals (struck down and replaced) and the ADR framework the KRA runs under section 55. The procedure applies to every tax the TPA covers, and customs disputes follow the EACCMA's review route into the same Tribunal.

2Key definitions

Tax decision and appealable decision

A tax decision is an assessment, a determination of the amount of tax payable, a refund decision, a penalty or interest decision or a demand; an appealable decision is an objection decision on a tax decision, and any other decision the Act makes appealable (a refusal to register, a refusal of a waiver, a licence cancellation). Only appealable decisions go to the Tribunal.

Notice of objection

A written objection to a tax decision lodged with the Commissioner within 30 days of being notified of the decision, stating precisely the grounds, the amendments required and the reasons, and accompanied by the return where none was filed and by payment of the tax not in dispute; a late objection needs the Commissioner's leave on reasonable cause.

Objection decision

The Commissioner's decision allowing or disallowing the objection in whole or part, with reasons, within 60 days of receiving a valid objection; if no decision is made within 60 days the objection is deemed allowed (section 51(11)).

Tax Appeals Tribunal

An independent tribunal of a chairperson and members appointed by the Cabinet Secretary, sitting in panels, which hears and determines appeals from objection decisions and other appealable decisions, with power to confirm, vary or set aside the decision and to award costs; it must determine an appeal within 90 days of filing.

Alternative dispute resolution (ADR)

A facilitated negotiation between the taxpayer and the KRA under the KRA's ADR framework, available at the objection stage or after an appeal is filed with the Tribunal's leave, to be concluded within 90 days, resulting in a signed agreement that is binding and is adopted by the Tribunal as its judgment where the appeal is pending. ADR cannot settle questions of pure law or matters under prosecution.

Burden of proof

On the taxpayer, under section 56, to prove that an assessment is excessive or a decision wrong; the Commissioner's assessment stands unless displaced by evidence, though the Commissioner must give reasons and disclose the basis.

3Charge, computation and rates

The route and its timelines

Stage	Time limit	What happens
Notice of assessment or decision	Starts the clock	The Commissioner notifies the taxpayer with reasons and the due date; weekends and public holidays are excluded from the day counts below (2024)
Objection to the Commissioner	Within 30 days of notification	Valid only if it states the grounds and amendments precisely, includes any unfiled return, and the undisputed tax is paid; the Commissioner may accept a late objection for reasonable cause (illness, absence, other reasonable cause) if applied for
Commissioner's objection decision	Within 60 days of a valid objection	Allow, partly allow or disallow, with reasons; silence for 60 days means the objection is allowed
Appeal to the Tax Appeals Tribunal	Notice of appeal within 30 days of the objection decision; memorandum and statement of facts and the documents within 14 days of the notice (extendable)	Filing fee KES 20,000; the Commissioner files a statement of facts in 30 days; hearing on documents and witnesses; decision within 90 days of filing; either party may seek a stay of recovery pending the appeal
ADR	Within 90 days of referral	At the objection stage or with the Tribunal's leave; a signed agreement is binding and, if an appeal is pending, is entered as the Tribunal's judgment; failure to agree returns the matter to the formal track
Appeal to the High Court	Within 30 days of the Tribunal's decision (extendable by the Court)	On a question of law only, by a party dissatisfied; the Court may confirm, vary or remit; no deposit of tax is required (the 20% deposit rule was struck down)
Appeal to the Court of Appeal	Within 30 days (Court of Appeal Rules)	On a question of law, with the Court's leave where required; further appeal to the Supreme Court only on matters of general public importance
Enforcement pending appeal		Tax remains due and interest runs; the Commissioner may not enforce collection of the disputed amount while an objection is pending in practice, and the Tribunal or Court may order a stay on terms (often payment of part or security)

Making a valid objection

Identify the decision and the date of notification; count 30 working days (excluding Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays); lodge the objection on iTax under the assessment with a written notice attached.
State each ground precisely (the assessment double-counts sales already declared; the disallowed expense was wholly and exclusively for the business under section 15; the capital allowance rate applied is wrong), the amendment sought (reduce the assessment to KES X) and the reasons with supporting documents; a vague objection ('we disagree') is invalid and the Commissioner will notify the taxpayer to rectify within a set period.
Pay the tax not in dispute, or the objection is invalid; where the whole assessment is disputed, say so and pay nothing, but interest runs.
Where the return was never filed (a default assessment), file the return with the objection; the objection is invalid without it.
Keep the correspondence trail: the objection acknowledgement, requests for information, the objection decision; if 60 days pass without a decision, write to the Commissioner recording that the objection is deemed allowed and ask for the ledger to be amended.

Before the Tribunal and the courts

The appeal documents: the notice of appeal, the memorandum of appeal (grounds), the statement of facts (a narrative with the documents relied on), and the tax decision appealed; the Commissioner responds with a statement of facts; the parties may file witness statements and expert reports; hearings are ordinarily by written submissions with oral highlights.
The Tribunal decides on the evidence and the law, may take expert evidence (valuers, actuaries, transfer pricing economists), and gives a written judgment with reasons; costs may be awarded to the successful party; the judgment is enforceable as a court decree.
The High Court hears appeals on questions of law (whether the Tribunal applied the correct legal test; whether there was any evidence for a finding), not fresh factual disputes; the Court of Appeal likewise. Judicial review in the High Court remains available for a decision made without jurisdiction, in breach of the Constitution or natural justice (a demand without an assessment, an agency notice on undisputed tax, a refusal of reasons), and constitutional petitions have struck down provisions of the Finance Acts of 2023 and 2024 on public participation grounds.
Leading cases examiners cite: the Supreme Court's 2024 ruling on the Finance Act 2023; the Court of Appeal's decisions on the deemed-allowance of objections after 60 days and on the invalidity of the 20% pre-appeal deposit; Tribunal decisions on transfer pricing, exported services zero-rating, and the definition of royalties for software.

Timeline for a disputed VAT assessment

10 August 2026: the Commissioner issues an additional VAT assessment of KES 3,000,000 after an audit, disallowing input tax on invoices the KRA says were not declared by the suppliers. The taxpayer agrees KES 400,000 relates to a supplier who deregistered, and disputes the rest.

By 21 September 2026 (30 working days, weekends and the public holidays excluded): the taxpayer objects on iTax, pays the undisputed KES 400,000, attaches the eTIMS invoices and the suppliers' declarations for the KES 2,600,000 in dispute, and sets out the ground that the supplier declarations exist.

By 20 November 2026 (60 days): the Commissioner issues an objection decision allowing KES 2,000,000 and confirming KES 600,000. Interest at 1% a month has run on the 600,000 from the original due date.

Within 30 working days of the decision: notice of appeal to the Tribunal on the remaining KES 600,000 (fee KES 20,000), memorandum and statement of facts within 14 days; the parties agree to ADR, which is concluded within 90 days at KES 250,000 with penalties waived; the agreement is filed and adopted as the Tribunal's judgment. Had ADR failed, the Tribunal would decide within 90 days of filing, with a High Court appeal within 30 days on any point of law.

4Compliance: returns, payment and penalties

During a dispute the taxpayer keeps filing and paying every other obligation on time (a dispute on one period does not suspend the rest, and the compliance certificate depends on it), pays the undisputed tax, seeks a stay or an instalment arrangement on the disputed amount where enforcement is threatened, and preserves the records and correspondence. An objection lodged late without leave, or without the undisputed tax paid, or without the missing return, is invalid and the assessment becomes final and conclusive, at which point the only routes are an application for late objection on reasonable cause, an application to amend the assessment under section 31 within five years where there is a clear error, or judicial review on procedural grounds. Costs at the Tribunal are modest; legal fees are not recoverable from the KRA unless awarded. A taxpayer who wins is entitled to the refund of any overpaid tax with interest from the Commissioner at 1% a month after the statutory period; a taxpayer who loses pays the tax, the penalty and the interest accrued through the dispute, so a weak objection is costly and a valid ADR settlement is often the efficient outcome.

5Examinable focus

What KASNEB tests

The dispute timeline question is near-certain: the 30 days to object (working days since 2024), the contents of a valid objection (grounds, amendments, reasons, undisputed tax paid, return filed), the Commissioner's 60 days and the deemed allowance, the 30 days to appeal to the Tribunal, its 90 days to decide, ADR within 90 days, and 30 days to the High Court on a point of law. Draw it as a timeline with dates from the scenario. Theory parts ask for the composition and powers of the Tribunal, the advantages of ADR, the burden of proof, the difference between an appeal and judicial review, and whether tax must be paid pending appeal (no deposit, but interest runs and a stay may be sought). Cite the Tax Appeals Tribunal Act and sections 51 to 56 of the TPA.