Africa-Press – Botswana. The Botswana Unified Revenue Service (BURS) has officially opened the 2025 individual income tax filing season and is urging individual taxpayers to file their tax returns for the year ended June 30.
Delivering a keynote address to mark the opening of the filing season, BURS board chairperson Mr Lesedi Senatla said the tax filing period began on July 1 and will run until September 30. With a strong emphasis having also been placed on employer compliance to ensure a smooth and effective process, he highlighted the critical role that employers play in BURS’ revenue mobilisation strategy.
Mr Senatla urged employers to guide their employees in submitting accurate and timely Pay-As-You-Earn (PAYE) filings and to issue necessary documents such as the ITW8 tax certificates, which facilitate timely submission of individual tax returns. Mr Senatla also encouraged taxpayers to take full advantage of BURS’ digital platforms, including its e-services portal and Mtax mobile app, for convenient and prompt filing.
For her part, BURS Commissioner General Ms Jeanette Makgolo called on employers to submit PAYE deduction returns by July 31, 2025, allowing employees to access their tax certificates on time.
“Employers are the linchpin in ensuring that individual tax obligations are met efficiently, helping to avoid potential penalties and unnecessary stress for employees,” she said.
Ms Makgolo emphasised that the filing requirements remain unchanged for the 2025 season, with individuals earning a gross annual income above P480 000 being required to file a return. She said those earning below the set threshold, whose income is solely from a single employer and is fully taxed through PAYE are exempt unless they have multiple sources of income. She said those who changed employers during the year, or were employed for less than 12 months are also exempted from filing returns.
Ms Makgolo noted that for the 2025/26 financial year, BURS is expected to collect P60.4 billion, representing over 80 per cent of the government’s total budgeted revenue and grants. The figure, she said includes P5 billion from mineral tax, P12.1 billion from Value Added Tax (VAT), P19 billion from non-mineral income tax, and P24.4 billion from the Southern African Customs Union (SACU).
To improve access and compliance, BURS has intensified its outreach efforts through direct engagement programmes, social media campaigns, and the deployment of mobile service trucks to reach under-served communities, she said. Additionally, she said the tax authority unveiled a new customer service centre, equipped with self-service kiosks, an electronic queue management system (eQMS), free Wi-Fi connectivity, and dedicated support staff to assist taxpayers with e-services and the Mtax App.
“We urge all taxpayers, including employers, to embrace our digital platforms, which offer greater convenience and efficiency,” said Makgolo.
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