Concerns are growing among Kenyan consumers over allegations that some traders may be issuing fake electronic tax receipts, including receipts with QR codes that appear to lead to non-official verification pages.
The claims gained fresh attention after an X user alleged that some businesses are exploiting older or manual Electronic Tax Register systems to issue receipts with fake QR codes. According to the post, customers are sometimes told that the receipt “cannot be queried” until the business reconnects the machine at the end of the month. The allegation has not been independently verified, and KRA has not issued a public statement specifically addressing that post.
The issue touches on a wider tax-compliance transition in Kenya. The Kenya Revenue Authority says all persons engaged in business are required to onboard onto eTIMS and issue electronic tax invoices. eTIMS, short for electronic Tax Invoice Management System, is KRA’s software-based platform for electronic invoicing.
Under Kenya’s Tax Procedures (Electronic Tax Invoice) Regulations, 2024, every person carrying on business must use an electronic tax invoicing or receipting system unless exempted. The regulations require each sale to be recorded in the system, an invoice to be generated through the system, invoice details to be transmitted to the Commissioner, and each electronic tax invoice to include, among other details, a unique invoice identifier and a QR code.
KRA has previously explained that upgraded ETRs were introduced to validate invoice data and transmit electronic tax invoices to the authority in real time or near real time. It also said QR codes on electronic tax invoices allow customers to confirm whether receipts issued by traders are valid.
However, the latest public concern suggests that the presence of a QR code alone may not be enough to reassure consumers. If a QR code points to a fake website or fails to return a result from KRA systems, the customer may not know whether the transaction has actually been transmitted to the tax authority.
KRA’s own guidance says consumers can verify the validity of an electronic tax invoice by scanning the QR code or by entering the invoice number in the “Invoice number checker” on the iTax portal. The authority has also promoted the Risiti Legit app, which it says allows users to scan TIMS ETR and eTIMS receipts. During its “Jinice na Risiti Legit” campaign, KRA encouraged Kenyans to scan or upload receipts and said each verified receipt would count as an entry into a weekly draw.
The Risiti Legit app is listed as a KRA-developed tool for authenticating eTIMS QR codes. Its Google Play listing says it is designed to “authenticate eTiMS invoice QR codes,” while Apple’s App Store listing says the app checks security features in eTIMS invoice QR codes and retrieves invoice-specific information from the eTIMS system.
Tax experts say the stakes are higher because eTIMS is no longer only a VAT administration tool. The 2024 regulations apply broadly to persons carrying on business, while professional tax alerts have noted that eTIMS has become central to validating business income and deductible expenditure.
The alleged fake-receipt problem also raises enforcement questions for KRA. If consumers are increasingly being asked to verify receipts themselves, the authority may face pressure to make verification faster, more reliable and easier to understand, especially when receipts fail to verify immediately.
For consumers, the safest approach is to verify receipts through official KRA channels rather than relying solely on the printed QR code. A genuine electronic tax invoice should be verifiable through KRA’s systems, either by scanning the QR code using the appropriate verification tool or checking the invoice number through iTax. Where a receipt redirects to an unfamiliar website, fails verification, or the trader gives an explanation that the invoice will only be uploaded later, consumers should preserve the receipt and report the matter to KRA for follow-up.
For businesses, the law places the responsibility on the user of the system to ensure each sale is recorded, invoices are generated through the system, and invoice details are transmitted to KRA. The regulations also require continuity of the system and outline steps to take when a business cannot use the system.
As Kenya deepens its shift from hardware-based ETRs to software-based eTIMS invoicing, the public complaints highlight a key challenge: digital tax compliance depends not only on issuing electronic receipts, but also on public confidence that those receipts are real, verifiable and linked to KRA’s official systems.