NAIROBI, Kenya, Aug 17 – The Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) has disowned a graphic circulating online claiming that bank accounts belonging to Kenyans who fail to remit the Affordable Housing Levy will be frozen.
The tax authority said the graphic, which bears the image of President William Ruto and the KRA branding, is fake and was not issued by the revenue agency.
In a public notice, KRA urged Kenyans to disregard the information and rely on its official communication channels for accurate information on tax obligations.
“KRA has not issued the information contained in this graphic,” the authority said.
“Members of the public are advised to disregard the misleading information and verify all tax-related information through official KRA communication channels.”
The fake graphic carries the KRA slogan, “Tax Simple, Swift, Secure”, alongside a warning in bold lettering that reads: “BANK ACCOUNT TO BE FROZEN IF YOU FAIL TO REMIT HOUSING LEVY.”
The message is accompanied by a photograph of President Ruto, creating the impression that the warning is an official government directive.
KRA, however, has distanced itself from the message and cautioned taxpayers against acting on unverified information circulating on social media.
The notice comes amid continued public debate over the Affordable Housing Levy, a mandatory contribution introduced under the government’s affordable housing programme.
Under the current framework, employees contribute 1.5 per cent of their gross monthly salary towards the levy, while employers make a matching contribution of 1.5 per cent.
The levy has been a subject of significant legal and political controversy since its introduction, with questions raised over its constitutionality, administration and the manner in which it is collected.
The government has defended the levy as a key source of funding for the affordable housing programme, which is one of President Ruto’s flagship initiatives under the Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda.
The fake message appears to exploit that ongoing public debate by suggesting that failure to remit the levy would automatically result in the freezing of a taxpayer’s bank account.
KRA did not indicate whether any action had been taken against the individuals responsible for creating or circulating the graphic.
The authority has, however, repeatedly warned taxpayers about fraudulent messages, fake social media accounts and misleading information purporting to originate from the revenue agency.
The latest clarification also comes as government agencies increasingly use their official digital platforms to counter misinformation and distinguish legitimate public notices from fabricated material.
KRA urged members of the public to verify tax-related announcements through its established communication channels before sharing or acting on them.
The authority’s warning is particularly significant because fabricated notices carrying official logos, government branding and images of senior state officials can easily be mistaken for genuine government communication.
Kenyans have therefore been advised to treat claims about tax obligations, penalties and enforcement measures with caution and seek confirmation directly from KRA before taking action.
The revenue authority reiterated that the circulating graphic should be disregarded, confirming that it did not issue the purported warning on freezing bank accounts over failure to remit the Housing Levy.
