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MSL Business School · Electronic communications tax guide
Communications Service Tax in Ghana
The current 5% rate, taxable electronic communications, recharges and non-cash supplies, imported services, invoices, monthly accounting and filing controls.
Published and prepared by MSL Business School through TaxLawGH.
MSL Business School controlling answer
CST is 5% of the qualifying electronic communications service charge.
The user bears the tax and pays it with the service charge; the service provider collects, accounts and pays it monthly. Where a Ghana user receives a covered service from outside Ghana, the user can become the person required to account for the tax.
Rate history: Act 754 began at 6%. The Communications Service Tax (Amendment) Act, 2019 (Act 998) increased the rate from 6% to 9% from 19 August 2019. Act 1025 then reduced it to the current 5% from 15 September 2020.
Chargeable service
The tax follows electronic communications service usage, including recharges.
Qualifying fixed or mobile voice, messaging and related public electronic communications usage.
Qualifying data transmission, internet access and related electronic communications supplied by covered providers.
The 2013 amendment clarified the inclusion of interconnection services within the tax base.
GRA's current administrative scope includes providers classified or notified by the National Communications Authority, including relevant radio and television service providers.
Any plan, scheme or form by which users receive additional electronic communications services is treated as a charge for usage.
Covered electronic communications received by a user in Ghana from a source outside Ghana remains within the statutory charge.
Private-service exclusion: Act 864 excludes a private electronic communications service—an internal service within an enterprise or affiliated body operated without interconnection to a public network enabling communications outside that group. Test the statutory definition rather than labelling any corporate network “private.”
Who pays and who accounts
The economic payer and the statutory collector are usually different persons.
| Person | Core CST obligation |
|---|---|
| User or consumer | Pays CST together with the covered service charge. |
| Ghana service provider | Charges, collects, records, returns and pays CST for the monthly period. |
| Recipient of outside-Ghana service | Accounts for CST where the Act places liability on the Ghana user receiving the covered service. |
| Person issuing an invoice showing CST | The amount shown as CST is recoverable as tax from the issuer even if CST was not chargeable or the issuer was not authorised to provide the service. |
Charge and valuation
Money, recharges and free or promotional usage all need a tax base.
Use the amount charged for the electronic communications service usage, excluding VAT, the Ghana Education Trust Fund Levy and the National Health Insurance Levy under the CST definition as amended by Act 998.
Use the open-market value required by the Act, rather than only the cash component.
Promotional, protocol, personal-use, bonus, gift and similar supplies use open-market value, subject to the statutory valuation rule.
Capture the value through which the user receives additional service. Face value and usage records must reconcile to the provider's billing model.
Billing and interaction with VAT
Show CST as its own statutory charge.
The bill, invoice or recharge record should identify the service charge and CST clearly enough to trace the 5% computation. Where VAT, NHIL and GETFund levy also apply, compute and disclose them under the separate Value Added Tax Act, 2025 and levy rules using their correct statutory value.
Do not multiply one headline percentage by the final bill. CST has its own charge definition. VAT, NHIL and GETFund have their own value and invoice rules. A bundled amount, device sale, exempt element, discount, recharge or imported service may require allocation before the charges are computed.
Monthly return and payment
The last working day is both the filing and payment deadline.
- 01Close the calendar month
Reconcile billed usage, prepaid recharges, interconnection, promotions, imported service, adjustments and CST collected.
- 02Prepare the CST return
Use the prescribed monthly return and required revenue schedules for the service categories and adjustments.
- 03File by the last working day
The return is due no later than the last working day of the month immediately after the accounting month.
- 04Pay by the same deadline
Pay the tax due with the return. A written extension requires the Commissioner's approval for good cause; do not assume one.
Late return: Act 754 states a GHS 2,000 penalty plus GHS 500 for each day the failure continues. Late payment and other defaults also engage the applicable interest, recovery and Revenue Administration Act rules.
MSL Business School monthly control file
Billing, network usage, cash and the return must close to one number.
| Control | Evidence |
|---|---|
| Provider scope | NCA licence, classification or notification and product/service map. |
| Revenue completeness | Network records, billing engine, recharge platform, general ledger and bank settlement. |
| Valuation | Tariffs, bundles, allocation rules, discounts, promotions, gifts and open-market-value support. |
| External services | Supplier, contract, Ghana recipient, usage, charge and self-accounting analysis. |
| Invoice | Service charge, CST, VAT-system charges, adjustments and credit records. |
| Monthly compliance | Return, schedules, payment, ledger, variance review and GRA correspondence. |
Frequently asked questions
Communications Service Tax questions
What is the current CST rate in Ghana?
5% of the charge for use of the qualifying electronic communications service, effective from 15 September 2020.
Who pays CST?
The user pays CST together with the service charge. A Ghana service provider normally collects and accounts for it; a Ghana user of a covered outside-Ghana service may have direct liability.
Are recharges subject to CST?
Yes. Act 864 provides that any form of recharge is treated as a charge for usage of electronic communications service.
When is the CST return due?
By the last working day of the month immediately after the accounting month, with payment due by the same deadline.
Is CST the same as VAT?
No. CST is a separate 5% tax under Act 754. VAT, NHIL and GETFund levy are calculated and invoiced under their separate legislation.
MSL Business School official source map
The principal Act and amendments must be read together.
- Communications Service Tax Act, 2008 (Act 754)Charge, collection, monthly return, deadline, recovery, records and administration.
- Communications Service Tax (Amendment) Act, 2013 (Act 864)Expanded electronic communications scope, recharges, interconnection, outside-Ghana supplies and valuation definitions.
- Communications Service Tax (Amendment) Act, 2019 (Act 998)Increased the rate from 6% to 9% from 19 August 2019 and excluded VAT, GETFund Levy and NHIL from the CST value.
- Communications Service Tax (Amendment) Act, 2020 (Act 1025)Current 5% rate and commencement on 15 September 2020.
- GRA CST administrationCurrent provider scope, filing channel and administrative explanation.
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TaxLawGH is MSL Business School's Ghana tax education platform.
MSL Business School maintains this guide as part of its public tax and fiscal policy education work.
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