Tax penalty estimator workbook
Estimate the cost of late filing and payment for several returns at once, with the filing penalty, late payment penalty and monthly interest.
Late returns cost more than people expect, and often several are late at once. This workbook lets you list each return with its tax, due date and the date you file and pay, and works out the days late, the filing penalty, the late payment penalty and the monthly interest, so you can decide what to pay first and what the delay will cost.
Business owners and accountants catching up on overdue returns, and anyone preparing a payment plan or a waiver request who needs to know what is owed.
What is included
- Several returns on one page
- Days and months late worked out
- Filing penalty, payment penalty and interest
- Total cost of lateness
- Penalty rates you can edit
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How to use it
- Check the penalty rates on the Rates sheet and change them for the tax head you are working on.
- List each return with its tax due and its due date.
- Enter the date you file and pay.
- Read the penalty, interest and total for each return and in total.
Templates are tools to help with your own records. They are not tax or legal advice. Check the figures against official sources before filing or paying.
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What the tax penalty estimator workbook does
Late returns cost more than people expect, and often several are late at once. This workbook lets you list each return with its tax, due date and the date you file and pay, and works out the days late, the filing penalty, the late payment penalty and the monthly interest, so you can decide what to pay first and what the delay will cost.
Who it is for
Business owners and accountants catching up on overdue returns, and anyone preparing a payment plan or a waiver request who needs to know what is owed.
How to use the workbook
- Check the penalty rates on the Rates sheet and change them for the tax head you are working on.
- List each return with its tax due and its due date.
- Enter the date you file and pay.
- Read the penalty, interest and total for each return and in total.
- Save a copy under a new name for each month or year, so earlier records stay as they were.
What is inside
- Several returns on one page
- Days and months late worked out
- Filing penalty, payment penalty and interest
- Total cost of lateness
- Penalty rates you can edit
The workbook has these sheets: Instructions, Returns, Rates. The main table has the columns Tax head; Tax due; Due date; Date filed and paid; Days late; Months late; Filing penalty; Late payment penalty. Yellow cells are for you to fill in and grey cells calculate by themselves, so leave the grey cells alone. The example rows show how it works; type over them with your own entries.
Tips for getting it right
- Penalty rates and minimums differ by tax head; check the one that applies.
- Interest runs until the tax is paid, so pay as early as you can.
- Ask KRA about amnesties and payment plans.
- File first, then pay what you can.
Why keep this record
Most tax trouble comes from late or missing records rather than from the tax itself. When the figures are collected as they happen, preparing a return becomes a matter of copying totals, not of searching for receipts. A workbook that follows the same layout as the return also makes it easier to spot a number that looks wrong before KRA does, and to explain it if asked.
Questions people ask
Do I need to know Excel formulas? No. Type into the yellow cells and the rest is worked out for you. The formulas are visible if you want to see how a figure is reached.
Can I add rows or change the layout? You can add your own columns to the right and your own notes. If you insert rows inside a table, copy the grey formula cells down so the new rows calculate too.
Will it work on my phone or in Google Sheets? Yes for viewing and typing, but dropdown lists and the charts look best in desktop Excel or LibreOffice.
Keeping it safe and up to date
Tax figures change with each Finance Act, so check the Rates sheet against KRA's current guidance before you file. Keep the supporting documents with the workbook, and keep each year's copy for at least five years in case KRA asks for proof.
Read the KRA filing calendar for small businesses for the wider picture. Free calculators that go with it: Kra penalty calculator. See more tax templates or ask us for a custom one.
The workbook works in Microsoft Excel, LibreOffice and Google Sheets. It is a tool to help you work out and record figures, not tax, legal or accounting advice, and it is not affiliated with the Kenya Revenue Authority. If something does not work as described, contact us and we will put it right.
Related guides, calculators and templates
- Free calculator: KRA Late Filing Penalty and Interest Calculator
- Guide: Bank reconciliation step by step: match your books to your bank
- Guide: KRA penalties and interest explained: what late filing and payment cost
- Guide: The Affordable Housing Levy explained for employees and employers
- Another template: KRA filing and payment calendar
- Another template: Annual income tax estimator
- Another template: Capital gains computation sheet
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