COVID-19 Recovery Act repealed

Parliament has approved the law COVID-19 Health Recovery Levy (Repeal) Bill, 2025, bringing it to a close of a one percent levy on goods and services that started during the COVID-19 Recovery Act, 2021 (Act 1069).

If the President signs it, the repeal will officially remove the levy which was applied to both domestic supplies and imports. This is a measure which was first meant to help fund how Ghana is reacting to the COVID-19 pandemic and supporting to help fix the economy.

This kind of levy, had effectively increased the tax burden on businesses and households. The repeal, which received overwhelming support across party lines, fulfills a promise by President Mahama to streamline the tax regime and reduce the cost of doing business.

The government highlighted that it will continue to improve systems of the economy  in the 2026 Budget Statement. The Value Added Tax system is also part of broader efforts which will help boost and promote a bounce back which is also driven by businesses. This will enhance transparency in taxation

Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, the Minister of Finance explained that the COVID-19 Health Recovery Levy was no longer needed and because of that removing it is just one step in a broader. The agenda of the VAT reform is to create a fairer and spending in ways that support growth in the tax system.

Moving the motion for Parliament to adopt the Finance Committee’s report, Committee Chairman Isaac Adongo admitted that if we scrap the levy it will lead to a lower than expected revenue of GH¢3 billion and it will bring up confidence where ongoing tax reforms would boost business growth and will lead to more tax revenue.

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