Tanzania deems intending traders deregistered for VAT if they miss a 90-day notice after failing registration conditions

What changed in detail

Section 29(3) of Tanzania’s Value Added Tax Act (Cap. 148) lets a person register for VAT before making taxable supplies, subject to conditions that include a period, set by paragraph (c), within which the person must meet them.

Section 105 of the Finance Act, 2024 (Act No. 6 of 2024) adds two subsections after section 29(3):

• Subsection (4): a person who does not comply with the conditions under subsection (3) must notify the Commissioner General within 90 days after the end of the period required under subsection (3)(c), giving reasons for the failure.
• Subsection (5): a person who contravenes subsection (4) is deemed to be deregistered for VAT.

The Act was assented to on 30 June 2024 and came into operation on 1 July 2024. The amendment does not itself say anything about the treatment of input tax already claimed by a person who is deemed deregistered.

What it means

The rule is still in force but was built on in 2025. Section 126 of the Finance Act 2025 (Act No. 11 of 2025) inserted new subsections (5) and (6): on receiving the notification, the Commissioner General must serve a decision granting or refusing an extension of time, and a refusal also means the person is deemed deregistered. The 2024 deemed-deregistration subsection was renumbered (7). The Finance Act 2026 does not amend section 29.

So an intending trader who has not met the conditions now has two ways to lose registration: by staying silent past the 90 days, or by asking for more time and being refused. Silence is the worse option, since only notification opens the door to an extension.