Kenyan Apex Court Rules Treasury Can Exempt Foreign Companies from Income Tax
Kenya's Supreme Court has upheld the Treasury's power to exempt foreign companies from income tax through a gazette notice, provided it is tabled before Parliament and not annulled within 20 sitting days, dismissing a public interest challenge by Eliud Karanja Matindi against a 2021 legal notice exempting Japanese firms on 16 development projects including Olkaria geothermal plants and Mombasa port expansions.
The court found the notice was administrative rather than legislative, that Parliament had validly delegated the exemption power to the Cabinet Secretary, and that Matindi failed to prove discrimination on a balance of probabilities as he had not challenged the underlying bilateral financing agreements containing the specific waiver terms.
-Kenyan Wall Street
The court found the notice was administrative rather than legislative, that Parliament had validly delegated the exemption power to the Cabinet Secretary, and that Matindi failed to prove discrimination on a balance of probabilities as he had not challenged the underlying bilateral financing agreements containing the specific waiver terms.
-Kenyan Wall Street