Ghana’s new real-time digital VAT system has triggered a debate over online betting taxation, after MP Gideon Boako warned it could place a financial burden on bettors similar to the winning tax scrapped in 2025.
Although the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) claims that RTVAT enhances the collection of current taxes rather than enacting a new rate, its published guidelines do not go into detail on how the system handles individual betting transactions.
Boako warned that customers would have to pay more for services that were not previously subject to the relevant taxes, raising concerns about the effects of applying the effective rate to international digital service providers, including online bookmakers. Operators and players cannot be sure if stakes and deposits on international platforms will be subject to the full 20% effective rate until this is made clear.
In April 2025, Ghana eliminated the 10% withholding tax that was previously imposed to winnings from lotteries and betting. That fee was different from the VAT on eligible digital services and the several taxes that betting operators had to pay. Boako’s criticism does not prove the reinstatement of the previous betting winnings tax.
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Gambling games and games of chance are included in the official GRA e-commerce guidelines for electronically provided services. It does not, however, explicitly state that every wager, stake, or betting deposit is affected by the effective rate. On October 15, 2026, the GRA launched its Real-Time VAT Collection (RTVAT) system to automate the collection and tracking of VAT on qualified digital services provided by international businesses. The system covers eligible services that can be paid for with digital wallets, mobile money accounts, or bank cards issued by Ghana.
The 20% effective rate is made up of 15% VAT, 2.5% National Health Insurance Levy, and 2.5% GETFund Levy. According to the GRA, consumers who have already paid the required taxes should not be charged twice; however, consumers who use providers that have not yet charged the taxes may experience an increase in their costs.
