Times Tower, the Kenya Revenue Authority headquarters in Nairobi. Photo: Ruslik0 via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
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KRA links eTIMS to IFMIS: no valid tax invoice, no government payment.
The Kenya Revenue Authority and the National Treasury have linked the electronic Tax Invoice Management System (eTIMS) with the government's payment system, IFMIS. From now on, anyone supplying goods or services to a government entity must raise a valid eTIMS invoice before submitting a payment claim.
"Suppliers must generate valid eTIMS invoices for all supplies before submission for payment processing through IFMIS. The details of invoices submitted to government entities must correspond precisely with the invoices generated and recorded in eTIMS," KRA said in a joint statement with the Treasury on Tuesday, 1 September 2026.
Any mismatch between the two systems flags the transaction and delays or blocks payment. The move targets fictitious supplier invoices and suppliers who earn from public contracts while keeping a minimal tax footprint.
The bigger picture
The Star reports that the Treasury has reviewed 91,911 pending-bill claims worth Sh637.6 billion, recommending 29,885 claims worth Sh235.6 billion for settlement. County governments held Sh183 billion in pending bills as of June 2025, with Nairobi County alone accounting for Sh86.8 billion – almost half the county total.
KRA says more than 1.3 million taxpayers already use its simplified digital platforms. Kenya has an estimated 1.5 million small businesses, but fewer than 30,000 are registered with the revenue authority.
Tom Ambasa of Africa Watch cautioned that technology alone will not fix procurement: "Digital systems can flag mismatched invoices, but they cannot independently prevent collusion in tender awards."
For small suppliers: if your business sells to a county, school, hospital or ministry, you now need to be on eTIMS and your invoice details must match your claim exactly, or you will not be paid.
Sources: The Star; The Standard
That was a Kibra News Network report, read by an A I voice.
The Kenya Revenue Authority and the National Treasury have linked the electronic Tax Invoice Management System (eTIMS) with the government’s payment system, IFMIS. From now on, anyone supplying goods or services to a government entity must raise a valid eTIMS invoice before submitting a payment claim.
“Suppliers must generate valid eTIMS invoices for all supplies before submission for payment processing through IFMIS. The details of invoices submitted to government entities must correspond precisely with the invoices generated and recorded in eTIMS,” KRA said in a joint statement with the Treasury on Tuesday, 1 September 2026.
Any mismatch between the two systems flags the transaction and delays or blocks payment. The move targets fictitious supplier invoices and suppliers who earn from public contracts while keeping a minimal tax footprint.
The bigger picture
The Star reports that the Treasury has reviewed 91,911 pending-bill claims worth Sh637.6 billion, recommending 29,885 claims worth Sh235.6 billion for settlement. County governments held Sh183 billion in pending bills as of June 2025, with Nairobi County alone accounting for Sh86.8 billion — almost half the county total.
KRA says more than 1.3 million taxpayers already use its simplified digital platforms. Kenya has an estimated 1.5 million small businesses, but fewer than 30,000 are registered with the revenue authority.
Tom Ambasa of Africa Watch cautioned that technology alone will not fix procurement: “Digital systems can flag mismatched invoices, but they cannot independently prevent collusion in tender awards.”
For small suppliers: if your business sells to a county, school, hospital or ministry, you now need to be on eTIMS and your invoice details must match your claim exactly, or you will not be paid.
KNN Newsroom is the staff byline for stories written, rewritten and edited at the Kibra News Network desk. Where a story credits an outside outlet, the original source is linked at the foot of the piece.
