Time is Up: iTax Crashes as KRA Locks the Door on Extensions

Kenya’s annual tax filing rush has again exposed a familiar weakness in KRA’s digital system.
With the June 30 deadline hours away, some taxpayers have struggled to access the iTax portal, reporting broken links, error messages and failed logins. The disruption comes at a difficult moment because KRA has already issued a final reminder insisting that there will be no extension beyond midnight, Tuesday, June 30, 2026.

That puts many taxpayers in a difficult position. Under the law, PIN holders with an income tax obligation are required to file annual returns by the deadline, including those filing nil returns. Failure to file can attract penalties and, in some cases, default assessments.

The problem is that this is not an unexpected event. June 30 comes every year, and every year millions of taxpayers rush to file in the final days. KRA often urges people to file early, but the system also needs to be strong enough to handle predictable peak traffic. When taxpayers are willing to comply but cannot access the platform, the issue shifts from taxpayer behaviour to system capacity.

That is why the new filing calendar under the Finance Act, 2026 is important. From January 2027, individuals will be required to file their income tax returns by April 30, while companies and other non-individual taxpayers will retain the June 30 deadline. According to the National Treasury, the main aim is to give KRA more time to review and verify what individual taxpayers have filed, especially as the authority moves towards pre-populated returns and income and expense validation.

But the change also addresses another problem exposed by the current iTax disruption: congestion. Instead of having almost every taxpayer rushing towards the same June 30 deadline, individuals will file earlier, leaving June mainly for companies and other entities. That should ease the pressure on KRA’s systems during the final filing days.
Still, the bigger lesson remains clear. If taxpayers face penalties for missing deadlines, then the filing system must also be reliable enough to support compliance when demand peaks.