Prices of juices and water to increase on higher excise duty

Fruit juices will attract higher excise duty, popularly known as sin tax. [Courtesy]

The cost of fruit juice and bottled water will rise rapidly after the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) proposed high excise duty on select products.

The new duty will add to the increasing cost of living and will be applied on 34 consumer items.

Excise duty on bottled water will increase by 5.05 per cent to Sh6.03 per litre from the current rate of Sh5.74 per litre starting October, subject to approval by the National Treasury.

Fruit juices will also attract higher excise duty, popularly known as sin tax, that will go up by five per cent to Sh12.17 per litre.

This follows KRA’s adjustment of the levies in line with an overall increase in prices of goods and services - inflation rate - by 4.97 per cent for the 2020-21 financial year.

“In exercise of the powers conferred by Section 10 of the Excise Duty Act, 2015, the commissioner general adjusts for inflation the specific rates of duty set out in the schedule hereto in accordance with the formula specified in Part 1 of the First Schedule to the Act,” said KRA commissioner-general Githii Mburu in a statement.

Excise duty on most other products will increase by an average of 4.97 per cent.

Also set to rise is the price of petroleum products, which recently hit a historic high with petrol retailing at Sh134 per litre for the next 30 days.

The taxman will take Sh7,210 for every 1,000 litres of petrol, or Sh7.21 per litre. This is an increase of Sh341.3 for every 1,000 litres, or Sh1 per litre.

Excise duty on other petroleum products including kerosene, diesel and cooking gas will also go up in the new adjustments by 4.97 per cent.

Alcoholic beverages will also attract increased excise duty, which will see their retail prices go up.