VAT in Uganda: The 18% Rate, the New UGX 300 Million Threshold and How to File with URA

If you're running a shop, workshop or trading business in Uganda, you've probably heard that fewer small traders now have to deal with VAT. That's true. The annual registration threshold doubled this year, from UGX 150 million to UGX 300 million, so a lot of kiosks and mid-sized shops that used to worry about it no longer have to.

But cross that line, or do more than UGX 75 million in any three months, and VAT registration with the Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) stops being a choice.

What is VAT in Uganda right now?

VAT in Uganda is charged at a standard rate of 18% on most goods and services. You must register once your taxable turnover passes UGX 300 million in twelve months, or UGX 75 million in any three consecutive months, then charge VAT, file and pay monthly through URA's e-Tax portal (URA, VAT, checked November 2026).

Some supplies are zero-rated (taxed at 0%, mainly exports and a short list of specified goods) and some are exempt (no VAT at all, like most financial services and basic foodstuffs). Zero-rated and exempt aren't the same thing: a zero-rated business still claims back VAT it paid on its own purchases; an exempt one can't.

Quick facts: VAT in Uganda

Sources: URA's VAT page and VAT registered category page, checked November 2026.

Who has to register for VAT in Uganda

You must apply for VAT registration if either of these is true:

• Your taxable supplies (sales of goods or services that aren't exempt) were above UGX 300 million in any twelve-month period.
• Your taxable supplies were above UGX 75 million in any three consecutive calendar months. That's a quarter of the annual figure, and it catches a fast-growing business before it reaches the full-year number.

If you expect to cross UGX 75 million in the next three months, say because you've just won a big supply contract, you're meant to register at the start of that period rather than waiting to see what happens (URA, VAT).

The UGX 300 million threshold is new. Until 30 June 2026 it was UGX 150 million; Uganda's FY2026/27 tax amendments doubled it, part of a wider package Uganda Revenue Authority says touches VAT, income tax, excise duty, stamp duty and tax procedures this year (Forvis Mazars, Uganda's FY 2026/27 Budget: What Businesses Should Be Watching). The change took effect on 1 July 2026, confirmed in the Budget Speech delivered that June (LookupTax, VAT threshold correction). Not every URA page has caught up: the site's own list of who falls into the "VAT registered category" still quotes the old UGX 150 million figure, so go by the live VAT page, or call URA, if you see that number anywhere.

Below the threshold, registration is voluntary. URA can approve you if you have a fixed place of business, keep proper records and are, in its words, a "fit and proper person" (URA, VAT). People who do this anyway are usually traders who sell mostly to VAT-registered businesses and want to reclaim the VAT on their own stock and equipment, or who need a VAT certificate to supply government or large companies.

How to register for VAT with URA

1. Get a TIN first, if you don't already have one. You can't register for VAT without it; see our guide to getting your URA TIN number if you need to do this from scratch.
2. Confirm you deal in taxable supplies and have crossed, or expect to cross, one of the thresholds above.
3. Complete the DT-1011 VAT registration annexure through URA's e-Tax portal, alongside your business registration details (URA, VAT registered category). If you haven't formally registered the business itself yet, do that first with URSB; our guide to registering a business in Uganda covers the cost and steps.
4. Register for EFRIS. Businesses in the VAT category are required to use it under Section 73A(2) of the VAT Act, for issuing e-invoices or e-receipts on every sale.
5. Wait for URA to approve your application and issue your VAT registration certificate, which you can download once it's processed.

From that point, every taxable sale needs an e-invoice through EFRIS, not a handwritten receipt.

How to file and pay VAT

VAT in Uganda is filed monthly, not quarterly. Your return and payment are both due within 15 days of the end of the month you're reporting (URA, VAT).

1. Log in to EFRIS and the e-Tax portal with your TIN.
2. Check your monthly return, which EFRIS pre-fills from the e-invoices you've issued and received.
3. Confirm the output VAT (on what you sold) and input VAT (on what you bought for the business).
4. Submit the return and generate the payment slip.
5. Pay the balance, if output VAT is higher than input VAT, within the same 15-day window.

Miss the deadline and URA charges the greater of UGX 200,000 or 2% compounded interest on the outstanding amount for late filing, plus 2% compounded interest per month on any VAT paid late (URA, VAT).

If your input VAT is higher, because you bought stock, machinery or materials, you're owed a refund once the difference passes UGX 5 million, backed by e-invoices. You claim it on the same monthly return rather than filing a separate request.

Working out VAT-inclusive and VAT-exclusive prices

Mixing these up is the most common VAT mistake small businesses make. Two ways to handle the same 18% rate:

Adding VAT to an exclusive price. Say a carpentry workshop in Jinja quotes UGX 500,000 for a gate, excluding VAT. The VAT added is 500,000 × 18% = UGX 90,000, so the customer pays UGX 590,000 in total.

Pulling VAT out of an inclusive price. If that same workshop instead advertises "UGX 500,000, VAT included," the VAT portion isn't 18% of 500,000. It's 500,000 × 18/118 = UGX 76,271. The price before VAT was UGX 423,729.

Get this backwards on a quote and you either eat the VAT yourself or shock the customer with a higher final bill than they expected.

Mistakes that cost VAT-registered businesses money

• Issuing manual receipts instead of EFRIS e-invoices. Once you're VAT-registered, a handwritten receipt doesn't count as a tax invoice, and your customer can't claim input VAT on it.
• Treating the three-month test as optional. A business that does UGX 80 million in a good quarter has to register, even if its full-year total looks like it might land under UGX 300 million.
• Confusing zero-rated with exempt. If your sales are zero-rated, you still register, charge 0%, and claim back VAT on your purchases. Get this wrong and you lose input VAT you were entitled to.
• Forgetting the 15-day deadline shifts every month. Unlike an annual tax return, VAT gives you no grace period that resets once a year. Put it on a recurring reminder.
• Not updating pricing after the threshold change. If you de-registered because you're now comfortably under UGX 300 million, drop VAT from your invoices too; charging VAT you're not registered to collect is its own problem with URA.

If you're paying staff as well as filing VAT, run their numbers through our Uganda PAYE calculator so your payroll and VAT obligations don't eat into the same cash at the same time. For businesses still weighing whether to formalise at all, our guide to low-capital business ideas in Uganda and our breakdown of the mobile money agent business both flag where turnover tends to cross these VAT lines first.

More Uganda money guides, from passports to pensions, are on our Uganda hub.

Frequently asked questions

What is the VAT rate in Uganda?

The standard VAT rate is 18%. Some supplies, mainly exports and a specified list of goods, are zero-rated at 0%, and a separate list of exempt supplies (like most financial and medical services) carries no VAT at all.

What is the VAT registration threshold in Uganda?

UGX 300 million in taxable turnover over any twelve months, or UGX 75 million over any three consecutive months. This doubled from UGX 150 million on 1 July 2026 under that year's tax amendments.

Do I have to register for VAT if my turnover is below the threshold?

No, registration is voluntary below the threshold. URA can approve a voluntary application if you have a fixed place of business, keep proper accounting records, and pass its "fit and proper person" check.

How do I register for VAT in Uganda?

Get a TIN, then complete the DT-1011 VAT registration annexure through URA's e-Tax portal and register for EFRIS, since e-invoicing is compulsory once you're VAT-registered. URA reviews and approves the application before issuing your VAT certificate.

How often do I file VAT returns in Uganda?

Monthly. Both the return and the payment are due within 15 days of the end of the month, through EFRIS and the e-Tax portal.

What happens if I file or pay VAT late in Uganda?

Late filing costs the greater of UGX 200,000 or 2% compounded interest on the amount outstanding. Late payment adds 2% compounded interest per month on whatever VAT remains unpaid.