Finance Minister Dr Cassiel Ato Forson has reaffirmed that the government’s decision to abolish several taxes, including the Electronic Transfer Levy (E-Levy) and betting tax, forms part of a broader strategy to ease the tax burden on Ghanaians while stimulating economic growth.
Presenting the 2026 Mid-Year Budget Review in Parliament on Thursday, July 23, 2026, Dr Forson said the removal of what the government described as “nuisance taxes” is aimed at supporting businesses, boosting investment and creating jobs through a more efficient tax system.
“We abolished a number of nuisance taxes, including the E-Levy, betting tax, COVID-19 Health Recovery Levy, emission tax and VAT on motor insurance,” he told Parliament.
According to the Finance Minister, the tax reforms are designed to leave more disposable income in the hands of businesses and households, enabling companies to expand operations while encouraging consumer spending.
Dr Forson noted that the tax cuts form part of a wider reform agenda that includes Ghana’s first comprehensive Value Added Tax (VAT) reforms since 2015.
“For the first time since 2015, we undertook comprehensive VAT reforms, removing distortions, improving efficiency and strengthening compliance. More importantly, the reforms have left businesses with more working capital to invest, expand and create jobs,” he said.
He stressed that the government’s focus is to improve domestic revenue mobilisation through stronger tax administration rather than introducing new taxes.
As part of the reforms, Dr Forson disclosed that the government has introduced a sliding-scale royalty regime for gold to ensure Ghana receives a fairer share of revenue from its mineral resources.
He also announced the rollout of major customs reforms powered by artificial intelligence and other digital technologies to improve efficiency, strengthen compliance and boost revenue collection at the country’s ports.
The Finance Minister is presenting the 2026 Mid-Year Budget Review in line with Ghana’s Public Financial Management laws, providing Parliament with an update on the country’s economic performance, revenue and expenditure, debt servicing and the fiscal outlook for the rest of the year.
