ZRA joins global body, now has automatic access to financial information on Zambians living abroad

The Zambia Revenue Authority (ZRA) will now be able to access information from offshore accounts by virtue of being a member of the Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax purposes (Global Forum).

This information would, however, only be used for investigation and audit purposes only.

ZRA joined the forum in January 2024, becoming the 171st member.

The authority on Wednesday held an awareness meeting in Lusaka where its Commissioner-General, Dingani Banda, said ZRA would have automatic access to financial information on Zambian residents that was held in other jurisdictions.

ZRA would also reciprocate on the supply of such information.

This would be possible through the forum’s standards called: Exchange Of Information On Request (EOIR) and Automatic Exchange of Financial Account Information (AEOIR).

“The forum is a significant step forward for Zambia in promoting transparency and accountability in tax matters. This will put Zambia on the map as a country committed to promoting a fair, equitable, and transparent tax system.

“This will not only benefit our citizens but also contribute to the global efforts to promote sustainable development,” Banda said.

Zambia, he noted, would have access to a wealth of expertise and capacity-building programmes that would help the authority enhance its capacity to implement the international standards.

This, Banda explained, would enable ZRA to combat cross-border tax evasion and IFFS, which were among the major challenges facing the global community currently.

“This will assist the country in averting cross-border tax evasion and IFFS, which will result in more revenue collections for government expenditure,” Mr Banda said.

Head of the Global Forum Secretariat, Zayda Manatta, said the ascension of the Zambian tax agency would improve its capacity to fight tax evasion.

“The Global Forum plays a pivotal role in fostering international cooperation to combat tax evasion and other illicit financial flows.

“Its work seeks to ensure an effective global implementation of the standards of transparency and exchange of information for tax purposes, either on request or automatic,” Manatta said.

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