The Minister of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, Hon. Henry Musasizi, has backed President Yoweri Museveni's rationale for Parliament to reconsider the Income Tax (Amendment) Bill, 2026 and the Excise Duty (Amendment) Bill, 2026 arguing that the amendments are intended to strike a balance between revenue mobilisation and economic growth, and environmental protection.
Appearing before the Committee on Finance, Planning and Economic Development on Thursday, 16 July 2026, Musasizi said the amendments are also intended for tax fairness while preserving the original policy objectives of government.
In April 2026, the 11th Parliament considered and passed the Income Tax (Amendment) Bill and the Excise Duty (Amendment) Bill, among other tax Bills, ahead of the budget reading and the new financial year starting in July 2026. However, the president has since returned the two Bills to Parliament without assent.
In his letter to Parliament dated 10 July 2026, Museveni opposed the exemption from a 15 percent withholding tax for winnings from land-based casinos on clause of the Income Tax Bill, saying it would create unnecessary opportunities for tax avoidance and revenue leakage.
To uphold tax fairness and neutrality, the president proposed that the same withholding tax be imposed on land-based casinos as it is on online casinos.
Minister Musasizi supported the proposal, saying the Bill, as returned, establishes different tax treatment between online and land-based casinos.
“The different tax treatment for the same activity would inevitably encourage taxpayers to structure gaming activities through exempt entities simply to obtain a tax advantage,” he said, adding that the new proposal would help in the realisation of the original projected Shs65 billion revenue for FY 2026/2027.
On the other hand, Museveni also proposed that clause 2(e) of the excise duty bill be amended to maintain a 2.5 percent tax on single-use plastics as opposed to the 25 percent in the bill that was passed in April. The tax increment was intended to discourage the production and consumption of environmentally harmful single-use plastics in line with government’s environmental protection policy.
According to the President, the 25 percent tax on plastics is substantial and could adversely affect production and the sector at large, considering that viable alternatives to plastic packaging are not yet readily available in Uganda. He recommended that the increase be deferred while the policy undergoes further study.
Despite fears of government losing revenue for maintaining the excise duty at 2.5 percent, Musasizi defended the president’s opinion, saying additional Shs3 billion will be realised when the scope of single-use plastics is expanded from merely “kaveeras” to include plastic granules used in the manufacturing of single-use plastic products, and other products such as disposable plastic cups, plates, bottles, wraps, etc.
Members of Parliament welcomed the new amendments with some skepticism about government’s deliberate policy on environmental protection.
“Government has been keen on environmental conservation by chasing people from wetlands, but we still have plastics on lake shores, and this is causing food insecurity. Other governments have adopted other alternatives. Here, we still seem to promote the use of plastics. Where is the research?” Hon. Dickson Kateshumbwa (NRM, Sheema Municipality) said.
Workers’ Representative, Hon. Gilbert Agaba, said Uganda is watering down the little gains in the eradication of plastics.
“All other countries have dealt away with kaveeras. Supermarkets had started packaging goods in other environmentally friendly packets. Why are we going back?” he asked.
The finance committee, chaired by Hon. Maximus Ochai, is expected to present the report on the returned Bills for reconsideration next week.
