If my Landlord fails to issue me with an e-invoice/e-receipt, after paying my rent to him/her. What do you advise me to do?

Dear Reader,

Effective July 1, 2025 taxpayers engaged in real estate activities are required to issue EFRIS invoices for all their transactions. Where your landlord fails to issue an e-invoice/e-receipt, you are requested to disclose to URA the non-issuance or issuance of a lower value than what was paid, through URA Touchpoint at touchpoint@ura.go.ug or send an email to dnguna@ura.go.ug or call our whistleblower number 0800257700 or WhatsApp us on 0772140000.

The taxpayer may also use the informer management window accessed as below:

• Visit the URA web portal, www.ura.go.ug
• At the bottom left, select the whistle blow icon.
• Fill in the form
• Submit

Please note that in order for you to claim rental expenses incurred in generating income, an e-receipt/e-invoice should have been issued to you. In addition, e-receipt/e-invoice enables a VAT registered taxpayer to claim input tax incurred as provided by law.

URA is under obligation to protect the identity of the infromer.

Does the EFRIS e-receipt/e-invoice affect the amount of rent I have been paying to my Landlord?

Dear Reader,

The EFRIS e-receipt/e-invoice does not affect the amount of rent you have been paying to your Landlord. This is because e-receipt/e-invoice simply provides evidence of the transaction making it possible for you to claim rental expenses incurred in generating income. In addition, e-receipt/e-invoice enables a VAT registered taxpayer to claim input tax incurred where the landlord is registered for VAT.

What channels are available to use, if I want to issue an e-receipt in my business?

Dear Reader,

The following channels are available to you to issue and e-receipt/e-invoice:

1. The web portal ura.go.ug which is ideal for small businesses with low transaction volumes;
2. The EFRIS Mobile App available on Google play or App Store. This allows business owners to issue invoices directly from their smart phones;
3. System-to-system. This is used by large enterprises and is achieved by connecting their accounting software or Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems directly to URA.
4. Electronic Fiscal Device (EFD). This is a specialized machine/system used by businesses to record sales, manage stock and securely transmit tax information to URA.

What benefits does a tenant derive by requesting for e-receipts from a landlord?

Dear Reader,

EFRIS stands for Electronic Fiscal Receipting and Invoicing Solution, a digital system introduced by URA for purposes of real time transmission and authentication of business transactions and transaction data.

The benefits of requesting for an e-receipt/e-invoice from a landlord include:

1. Better record keeping by replacing paper receipts with safe digital storage thereby preventing physical loss of e-receipts/e-invoices;
2. Faster tax refunds;
3. Simplified filing of returns;
4. Supports the claiming of rental expenses incurred in generating income;
5. Enables VAT registered taxpayers to claim input tax incurred.

Can I use the EFRIS application as an alternative of an accounting package?

Dear Reader,

The EFRIS application cannot be substituted for an accounting package because the two are designed to meet different needs. While an accounting package may automate financial tasks thereby reducing human errors and providing real time visibility into business performance, EFRIS is a digital tax compliance application that provides the following benefits:

• EFRIS application helps a trader monitor stock movement and provides information on when to stock in particular items.
• Real time tracking of sales transactions.
• Better record keeping through safe digital storage thereby preventing physical loss of documents.

How can landlords verify that the rental tax assessed by URA is accurate and based on the correct taxable income?

Dear Reader,

A person who has earned rental income from letting out immovable property during a year of income is required to account for the income earned through a self-assessment return and pay the resultant rental tax on that income.  Where a person fails to file their own return or under declares the income earned, URA will raise an assessment for the undeclared income.

To determine whether the income declared by the taxpayer is accurate, URA relies on various sources of information such as third-party data, field inspections and return declarations among others. Therefore, taxpayers are advised to ensure that they file their returns and make correct declarations to avoid additional assessments.

Where the landlord is not in agreement with the tax assessed, they may object to the assessment and provide evidence to support their objection.

When URA rolled out EFRIS in the 12 sectors effective July 1, 2025, were there any exclusions?

Dear Reader,

When the Electronic Fiscal Receipting and Invoicing Solution (EFRIS) was first rolled out on January 1, 2021 all VAT registered taxpayers were required to use EFRIS while the non-VAT registered taxpayers could use it voluntarily.

In the second phase of roll out, non-VAT registered taxpayers in the 12 sectors listed below were gazetted to use EFRIS effective July 1, 2025:

• Wholesale and Retail of Fuel;
• Mining and Quarrying;
• Manufacturing;
• Electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply;
• Water supply; sewerage, waste management and remediation activities;
• Construction;
• Transportation and storage;
• Accommodation and food service activities;
• Information, Technology and communication;
• Real estate activities;
• Professional, scientific and technical activities;
• Arts, entertainment and recreation.

However, the following categories of taxpayers who fall in the above sectors were excluded from the mandatory requirement to issue e-invoice/e-receipt:

1. Businesses with turnover not exceeding UGX 10,000,000 per year;
2. Taxpayers earning rental income not exceeding UGX 2,820,000 annually;
3. All providers of passenger land transport including taxis, boda-bodas,shuttles, buses, and other land transport means for passengers.
4. All non-resident digital service providers who are required to pay digital service tax.

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