Excise Duty Calculator Kenya 2026

What excise duty is

Excise duty is a tax on specific goods and services, charged in addition to VAT. Governments use it to raise revenue from products such as alcohol, tobacco and fuel, and to discourage consumption of goods considered harmful. In Kenya it also applies to a range of services, such as airtime and mobile data, mobile money transfer fees and fees charged by financial institutions, and to betting and gaming.

Excise is charged under the Excise Duty Act. Some duties are ad valorem, which means a percentage of the value of the supply. Others are specific, which means a fixed amount per unit, such as per litre or per thousand sticks.

How the calculator works

You choose the product or service, enter the value of the supply, and the calculator applies the rate held for this site. For ad valorem items it multiplies the value by the rate. For specific items it multiplies the quantity by the rate per unit. The result is the excise duty for that supply.

What is loaded

Only a few service categories are loaded at present: airtime and data, mobile money transfer fees, financial institution fees and betting stakes. The tables for alcoholic drinks, tobacco, fuel, vehicles and other goods are not yet loaded. The page says so rather than guessing, because the rates for those items are specific and change often. For vehicles, use the car import duty calculator, which has its own excise bands.

A worked example

Excise on a KES 1,000 airtime purchase at the current rate is KES 150.00. The same amount of mobile data is treated alike, and the rate comes from the rates table on this page.

Who pays and who collects

For services, the provider adds excise to its charges and pays it to KRA, so the customer usually sees it included in the price or as a separate line on the bill. For goods made in Kenya, the manufacturer pays excise when the goods leave the factory. For imports, excise is paid at customs along with import duty and VAT. Manufacturers and certain importers must register as excise taxpayers, and some products need excise stamps.

Excise and VAT together

Excise is usually part of the price on which VAT is then calculated, which means VAT applies to the price including excise. The order matters when you check an invoice. For imported vehicles, for instance, VAT is calculated on the customs value plus import duty plus excise.

For businesses

A business that supplies excisable goods or services must register, keep records, file monthly returns and pay by the due date. Failing to do so can lead to penalties and seizure of goods. Businesses that buy excisable inputs for manufacture may claim relief in some cases.

For consumers

Excise is already in the price you pay, and the percentage is often shown in the terms of the service. Checking it is useful when you compare charges, for example mobile money fees and bank charges.

About the figures

The rates here are a partial list and are marked unverified until they are checked against the Excise Duty Act and its notices. The result is an estimate for information only. For anything not listed, check the Act or ask KRA.

Where excise shows up in daily life

Excise duty is easy to miss because it is included in the price. On a mobile money transfer, the fee you see already contains the duty, and on a bank statement the duty may appear as a separate line next to the charge. Telecom providers include it in the price of airtime and data bundles. If you run a business, the same duty applies to your own communications and financial costs, and in many cases you cannot reclaim it as input tax. Looking at these lines once a year can show where small charges add up.

Guides, tools and templates for this topic

Read next: VAT for small businesses in Kenya: when to register and what to charge, Turnover tax for small businesses in Kenya: rate, limits and when to use it, The KRA filing calendar for small businesses: every monthly and yearly deadline

Related calculators: VAT Calculator, Betting Winnings Tax Calculator, Import Duty Calculator for Goods

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