URA Commissioner General John R. Musinguzi interacting with some landlords after the event.
Mestil Hotel, Kampala | 17th September 2026: The Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) has urged Kampala City landlords to embrace the Electronic Fiscal Receipting and Invoicing Solution (EFRIS). The call was made during a high level engagement held at Mestil Hotel earlier today.
The meeting drew some of the city’s most prominent property owners and their representatives, for a candid conversation with URA leadership on why rental income tax has stagnated.
Landlords attending the event.
“We appreciate those who have invested in EFRIS, embraced it and consistently complied,” Kugonza said, adding that proper use of the system makes tax administration easier for both taxpayers and URA.
Kugonza also reminded the sector players that issuing the required receipts is a legal obligation and not an optional practice.
“Issuing an EFRIS receipt is a matter of law today, for you to support the government, EFRIS must match the actual tenancy agreement and rental account amount and receipts must be issued under the correct landlord’s entity and declared income must align with all EFRIS receipt records,” Kugoza said.
URA CG Musinguzi greets property mogul Sudhir Ruparelia.
Speaking on behalf of property owners, the chairman of landlords and property owners, Ambassador Godfrey Kirumira, acknowledged that EFRIS is not a tax but an electronic mechanism for strengthening tax administration.
“We accept that the rental tax like other sectors must adopt to digital tax administration and as the business community we shall voluntarily participate in this transition rather than wait for enforcement to comply.” Kirumira noted.
Commissioner General URA John.R. Musinguzi appreciated the landlords for playing a key role in Uganda’s economy.
“This sector creates employment right from building set ups, market for Ugandan manufactured products like iron bars, cement and also one of the biggest sectors that supports the financial sector.”
Musinguzi noted that real estate now contributes about six to seven percent of Uganda’s GDP and is among the fastest growing sectors in the economy, expanding by seven percent.
“But that growth has not translated into proportionate tax revenue. While every other major tax heads grew by double digits in the 2025/2026 financial year averaging 14 percent growth, rental income tax actually declined by one percent,” Musinguzi said.
URA CG Musinguzi joins landlords for a group photo after the engagement this Thursday.
He further informed the landlords that EFRIS is the solution to uplift the sector, warning that failing to issue EFRIS invoices, understating rental incomes, and skipping tax returns all amount to breaking the law.
Noting that Uganda’s fiscal reality of tax-to-GDP ratio sits at 14.3 percent, yet Uganda’s debt portfolio consumes 40 percent of annual revenue collected, Musinguzi said it is futile to dodge taxes yet the country is sinking further into debts.
He pledged to dedicate a technical team to quickly support the landlords to get on EFRIS with no challenges.
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