THE Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (Zimra) is targeting to register over 50 000 new taxpayers by yearend as part of its efforts to expand the tax base and reach its US$9,2 billion target for the year.
According to the 2026 budget, the government is targeting to collect revenues amounting to ZiG288 billion (US$9,4 billion) against planned expenditures of ZiG290,9 billion (US$9,5 billion).
For years, the government has failed to bring the informal sector, now estimated at 76,1% of the economy, into the fiscal net, depriving the government of additional budgetary support.
Previous research by the central bank showed that the informal economy generates US$14,2 billion annually, with US$2,5 billion in cash circulating at any given time.
A wider tax base is needed, as for years budget allocations always fall short of what ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs) request, which is typically three times more than what is allocated.
In the 2026 national budget, for example, MDAs submitted bids ofover ZiG828,5 billion which translating to US$31,64 billion.
“I would also like to highlight that for 2026 we expect to register more taxpayers.
“We expect to register 50 000 or more taxpayers by the end of 2026,” Zimra Technical Services head Martin Chinanayi said at a breakfast meeting on taxes in Harare on Friday.
“So, for those that have not registered, I encourage you to come forward.
“For those who will start new businesses, we also advise and encourage you to register.
“We observe that for our large and medium-sized clients, the submission of tax returns is now at a very high rate, more than 80% per month.”
Treasury projected cumulative revenue collections to year-end of ZiG215,7 billion (US$7,96 billion), against expenditures of ZiG219,46 billion (US$8,10 billion) for 2025.
“These fundamentals are key hinges of fiscal reform. Zimra is expected to collect, for the nation, US$9,2 billion,” Chinanayi said.
“And it means right from the start, the need for each one of us to plan to contribute towards providing a fiscal share in the development of our country.”
He added: “We sincerely look forward to your continued support to provide the fuel required by the nation to address health issues, to address education, to address infrastructure issues, and to address peace and security in the degradation that we live in.”
Finance, Economic Development, and Investment Promotion minister Mthuli Ncube said the government’s Vision 2030 relied on domestic resource mobilisation, which was a necessary step to push all businesses to register with Zimra.
“Our journey towards Vision 2030, of an aggregated income society, is predicated not on external resources, such as parliaments or aid, but on our capacity for domestic resource mobilisation,” Ncube said.
“We will no longer minimise the structural imbalance in our economy and heavy fiscal burden placed on the few or limited players in the informal sector, while vast segments of economic activity remain outside the tax net in the informal sector.
“This is unsustainable; a sovereign nation must be able to fund its own development.
“Therefore, we introduced fiscal measures, in fact, we introduced them in the entire budget, and it was not merely about closing budget deficits.”
These new tax provisions include a 0,5 percentage-point increase in value added tax (VAT) to 15,5%, a 15% digital services withholding tax on offshore platforms, and a tiered export tax on lithium set at 10% on ore and concentrate.
There was also a new 10% rental income withholding tax for properties that tenants use for business purposes.
However, Treasury is expected to collect most of its money from the new three-tiered gold royalty regime, whereby a US$0–US$1 200 price per ounce will attract a 3% royalty, US$1 201–US$2 500 (5%), and US$2 501 and above (10%).
One of the reasons for the optimistic outlook is that the gold price continues to surge amid global central banks stocking up on gold.
Ncube said Treasury interventions on revenue collections were strategic tools designed to modernise the tax architecture, ensure equity, and fund vital public infrastructure.
“We are recalibrating the fiscal social contract, and we are asking for more contributions, yes, but we are also delivering tangible results in health, in infrastructure,” he said.
Ncube said that once economic conditions become more stable and compliance levels strengthen, the government would be able to gradually relax enforcement pressure.
The International Monetary Fund, World Bank, and the African Development Bank have constantly encouraged the government to focus on local domestic resource mobilisation amid Zimbabwe’s preclusion from accessing loans owing to public debt.