Commercial banks in Ghana are preparing to apply a 20 per cent tax on qualifying payments for foreign digital services and online transactions made with Ghana-issued bank cards from October 15, 2026.
The move follows directives from the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) requiring banks to collect and remit applicable taxes on eligible cross-border digital transactions. Affected services include streaming platforms such as Netflix, Spotify, Disney+ and Showmax, productivity tools such as Zoom, Microsoft 365 and Adobe, and artificial intelligence services such as ChatGPT.
Other potentially affected services include cloud computing platforms such as Amazon Web Services (AWS), Google Cloud and DigitalOcean, as well as online advertising services offered by Google, Meta, TikTok and LinkedIn. Depending on the nature of the transaction, online learning platforms, digital gaming, VPN services, travel bookings and business communication tools may also fall within the scope.
The Commissioner-General of the GRA, Anthony Kwasi Sarpong, clarified the implementation during an interview on Joy FM’s Super Morning Show on Wednesday, October 14. He explained that the rollout would be gradual as the Authority works to bring more foreign digital service providers into the tax system.
“We have identified about a hundred new emerging ones who today are not charging the VAT,” he said.
According to Mr Sarpong, about 92 foreign companies are already registered and remitting VAT to the GRA. Customers paying for services from these providers should not face an additional 20 per cent charge under the new collection arrangement if the applicable taxes are already included in their prices.
“Nothing will change in terms of pricing from 92 merchants or entities,” he stated.
The new arrangement is therefore intended to strengthen tax collection rather than introduce a fresh tax on digital services. Banks and payment service providers will take on greater responsibility for collecting the applicable taxes when qualifying transactions are processed and transferring the revenue to the GRA.
