If you had a salary last year, PAYE was taken off every month, but you still have to file an annual return by 30 June. For most employees it is a matter of copying figures from one form, the P9, into iTax.

Get your P9

A P9 is a summary of your pay and the tax deducted for the year, one line per month. Your employer must give you one; ask HR or payroll in January. If you worked for more than one employer, you need a P9 from each.

Check it against your payslips. If a month is missing or wrong, ask the employer to correct it before you file.

Which return?

  • Salary only: use the employment income only return. It is the simplest, and much of it is pre-filled from what your employer declared.
  • Salary plus other income (freelance work, a business, rent not already taxed): file the full Income Tax - Resident Individual return, which has sections for each kind of income.

Nothing at all to declare? That is a nil return instead.

Step by step (employment income only)

  1. Log in at itax.kra.go.ke with your PIN and password.
  2. Go to Returns, then File Return, and choose Income Tax - Resident Individual.
  3. Choose the employment income only return, and check the year.
  4. Check the pre-filled employer details and pay against your P9. If they are missing, add each employer’s PIN and the gross pay and PAYE from the P9.
  5. Add any reliefs you are entitled to (see below).
  6. Check the tax computation, then Submit.
  7. Download the acknowledgement receipt.

Reliefs and deductions

These reduce your tax, and are often already applied through payroll - check before adding them again:

  • Personal relief of KES 2,400 a month, applied automatically.
  • Insurance relief on life, education and health policies, with the insurer’s certificate.
  • Pension contributions, including NSSF, within the allowable limit.
  • SHIF contributions and the Housing Levy, which have been deductible from taxable pay since late 2024 and should already appear on your P9.
  • Mortgage interest on a home you live in, within the annual limit, with your lender’s certificate.

“Tax due” - why it happens

The return sometimes shows tax to pay. The usual reasons:

  • Two employers. Each one gave you personal relief and taxed you from the lowest band, so together too little was deducted.
  • Figures that do not match the P9, or a pre-filled line counted twice.
  • Other income that was never taxed.

Check the figures first. If the tax is genuinely due, generate a payment slip on iTax and pay by M-Pesa or bank before 30 June to avoid penalties and interest.

Tax refund?

If you overpaid - for example you left a job partway through the year - the return will show a refund. Refunds are paid after KRA reviews them, which can take a long time; keep your documents in case they ask.

Penalties

Filing late costs KES 2,000 or 5% of the tax due, whichever is higher. Paying late adds a further penalty and monthly interest.

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