TaxLawGHby MSL Business School
MSL Business SchoolGhana personal tax relief authority guide
Ghana personal tax reliefs
The definitive guide to the reliefs available to resident individuals in Ghana—the current amounts, eligibility tests, evidence, claims and effect on personal income tax.
Published and prepared by MSL Business School through TaxLawGH, its tax and fiscal policy education platform.
MSL Business School personal tax reliefs at a glance
MSL Business School technical position
Personal tax relief reduces chargeable income—it is not a direct cash payment or tax credit.
The fixed annual reliefs currently range from GHS 600 per qualifying child to GHS 2,000 for qualifying skills training. Disability relief is 25% of qualifying assessable income, while qualifying mortgage interest follows the actual eligible interest paid.
Personal relief is available to a resident individual who satisfies the relevant statutory test and supports the claim. The reduction is applied before the graduated personal income tax rates; the cash tax saving therefore depends on the individual's marginal rate.
Who can claim
The claimant must be a resident individual and must satisfy each relief's conditions.
The personal-relief framework applies to a resident individual. A non-resident individual does not receive these resident personal reliefs.
The fixed figures are annual amounts. Payroll may spread an approved upfront relief over the remaining pay periods, but that does not increase the annual entitlement.
Where the law allows only one claimant for a child or aged relative, two people cannot claim relief for the same dependant in the same year.
The taxpayer must establish the personal facts, qualifying expenditure and any certification required for the particular relief.
Relief is claimed, not assumed: marriage, age, parenthood, disability, training or a mortgage does not by itself produce a deduction. The statutory test, claim and evidence must all be satisfied.
Current annual amounts
Ghana personal tax relief table
| Relief | Current amount | Core eligibility rule | Annual limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marriage or responsibility | GHS 1,200 | Dependant spouse or responsibility for at least two dependant children | One annual amount |
| Child education | GHS 600 | Qualifying child or ward in a recognised registered educational institution in Ghana | Maximum three children |
| Disability | 25% | Disability established to the Commissioner's satisfaction; employment or business income only | 25% of qualifying assessable income |
| Old age | Up to GHS 1,500 | Individual aged 60 years or more deriving assessable income from employment or business | Lesser of GHS 1,500 and that qualifying income |
| Aged dependant relative | GHS 1,000 | Qualifying dependant relative aged 60 years or more, other than spouse or child | Maximum two relatives |
| Professional, technical or vocational training | Actual cost | Training that updates the individual's professional, technical or vocational skills or knowledge | Maximum GHS 2,000 |
| Qualifying mortgage interest | Eligible interest paid | Qualifying mortgage for the individual's principal private residence | One building |
The fixed amounts are reductions in chargeable income, not reductions of the same amount from the tax payable. Mortgage interest is based on qualifying actual interest rather than a fixed statutory figure.
Family and dependant reliefs
Responsibility, child education and aged-relative reliefs have different tests.
Marriage or responsibility relief — GHS 1,200
A resident individual qualifies by maintaining a dependant spouse or by maintaining at least two dependant children. The amount is one annual relief; it is not multiplied by the number of spouses or children.
Child education relief — GHS 600 per child
The claimant must sponsor the education of a child or ward in a recognised registered educational institution in Ghana. The maximum is three children or wards. Where more than one person could qualify for the same child, only one may claim that child's relief.
Aged dependant relative relief — GHS 1,000 per relative
The relative must be at least 60 years old and dependent on the claimant. A spouse or child does not fall within this aged-relative category. Relief is limited to two relatives, and the same relative cannot support claims by two people.
Keep the family evidence: identity and age documents, marriage or dependency evidence, birth or adoption records, school details, fee evidence and confirmation that no duplicate claim has been made.
Age and disability
Old-age relief has a fixed ceiling; disability relief is income-based.
For an individual aged 60 years or more who derives assessable income from employment or business, the relief is the lesser of GHS 1,500 and the total of that qualifying income.
The relief is 25% of the individual's assessable income from employment or business. Investment income is outside the disability-relief base.
The disability must be established to the satisfaction of the Commissioner-General. Current administrative guidance requires certification from the Department of Social Welfare.
Where the individual has employment, business and investment income, calculate the 25% only on the qualifying employment and business assessable income.
Do not use total income blindly: the GHS 10,000 investment income is excluded from the disability-relief base in this example.
Professional development
Qualifying training relief is the actual cost, capped at GHS 2,000.
The training must update the individual's professional, technical or vocational skills or knowledge. A general personal-interest course does not qualify merely because the individual paid for it.
If qualifying training costs GHS 1,350, the relief is GHS 1,350—not the full GHS 2,000.
If qualifying training costs GHS 3,000, the annual relief is limited to GHS 2,000.
Retain evidence showing how the course updates the claimant's professional, technical or vocational capability.
Keep the course description, provider details, invoice, proof of payment, attendance and completion evidence.
The cap is not an automatic allowance: the claim is limited to the lower of the actual qualifying cost and GHS 2,000.
Principal private residence
Mortgage relief follows qualifying interest actually paid.
A resident individual may claim qualifying mortgage interest paid for the individual's principal private residence. The relief is connected to one building; it is not a recurring fixed amount and it does not include repayment of mortgage principal.
- 01Confirm the borrower and residence
The claimant must be the qualifying resident individual and the property must be the claimant's principal private residence.
- 02Confirm the mortgage purpose
Retain the facility documents showing the qualifying acquisition or construction of the residence and the connection between the borrowing and the property.
- 03Separate interest from principal
Claim the eligible interest component actually paid for the year. Capital repayment and unrelated charges are not mortgage-interest relief.
- 04Apply the one-building rule
The relief is available for only one building. A second residence or investment property does not generate another personal mortgage relief.
Evidence file: keep the mortgage agreement, property documents, lender's annual interest statement, payment records and proof that the property is the principal private residence.
Application and payroll treatment
Apply online, support the claim and reconcile it annually.
- 01Identify every relief
List the reliefs for which the resident individual meets the conditions and confirm that no dependant is claimed twice.
- 02Assemble the evidence
Prepare identification, dependency, school, age, disability, training or mortgage documents appropriate to each claim.
- 03Apply through the Taxpayers' Portal
The current online system allows a taxpayer to apply for tax reliefs through taxpayersportal.com.
- 04Apply approved upfront relief in payroll
Where an employee's relief is approved for payroll, the employer reduces chargeable employment income by the permitted amount over the applicable pay periods.
- 05Reconcile the annual amount
Confirm the final annual entitlement in the personal income tax return and ensure the total payroll relief does not exceed the permitted annual amount.
- 06Correct changes promptly
Update the claim where dependency, education, disability, residence, training, mortgage or employment facts change.
Portal access does not replace legal proof: an electronic claim must still be complete, accurate and supported by the required records.
MSL Business School worked calculation
How fixed personal reliefs reduce annual tax
Assume a resident individual has GHS 100,000 of chargeable income before personal reliefs, maintains a dependant spouse, sponsors two qualifying children and pays GHS 2,500 for qualifying professional training.
Why the saving is GHS 1,100: the GHS 4,400 relief falls within the individual's 25% marginal band, so GHS 4,400 × 25% = GHS 1,100. A taxpayer in another band obtains a different cash saving from the same fixed relief.
Frequently asked questions
Ghana personal tax relief questions
Who can claim personal tax relief in Ghana?
A resident individual who satisfies the specific conditions for the relief and supports the claim. The personal reliefs on this page are not available to a non-resident individual.
Does personal relief reduce tax payable directly?
No. Relief reduces chargeable income before the applicable tax rates are used. The actual tax saving depends on the claimant's marginal rate.
What is marriage or responsibility relief?
It is GHS 1,200 per year for a resident individual who maintains a dependant spouse or maintains at least two dependant children.
How much is child education relief?
GHS 600 per qualifying child or ward per year, for a maximum of three. Only one person may claim relief for the same child.
How much is disability relief?
Twenty-five percent of the qualifying individual's assessable income from employment or business. Investment income is excluded from the disability-relief base.
Who qualifies for old-age relief?
An individual aged 60 years or more who derives assessable income from employment or business. The relief is the lesser of GHS 1,500 and the total of that qualifying income.
How much is aged dependant relative relief?
GHS 1,000 for each qualifying dependant relative aged 60 years or more, limited to two relatives. The category excludes the claimant's spouse and child.
Is the training relief automatically GHS 2,000?
No. The relief is the actual qualifying professional, technical or vocational training cost, capped at GHS 2,000 for the year.
How does mortgage-interest relief work?
The deduction follows qualifying mortgage interest actually paid for the individual's principal private residence. It applies to one building and does not include mortgage principal.
How do I apply for tax relief?
The current Taxpayers' Portal allows taxpayers to apply for tax reliefs online. The claimant must submit accurate details and retain the evidence required for each relief.
MSL Business School legal reference map
Primary authority and operative framework
- Income Tax Act, 2015 (Act 896), as amendedResident-individual relief entitlement, chargeable-income calculation, mortgage-interest deduction and claim administration.
- Fifth Schedule to Act 896, as amendedMarriage or responsibility, child education, disability, old age, aged dependant relative and training relief conditions and amounts.
- Income Tax (Amendment) Act, 2019 (Act 1007)The amendment that increased the fixed personal relief amounts to the current figures presented in this guide.
- Income Tax Regulations, 2016 (L.I. 2244), as amendedEmployment-tax implementation, employer records and annual reconciliation framework relevant to upfront payroll relief.
- Revenue Administration Act, 2016 (Act 915), as amendedElectronic applications, returns, corrections, records, assessments, refunds, interest, penalties, objections and enforcement.
Authority hierarchy: Act 896 and its amending legislation control the entitlement and amount. Administrative guidance and the Taxpayers' Portal explain the current claim process but do not create a relief.
Institutional publisher
TaxLawGH is MSL Business School's Ghana tax education platform.
This guide forms part of MSL Business School's public tax and fiscal policy education work. MSL publishes TaxLawGH to make Ghana's tax law accurate, understandable and useful to taxpayers, employers, practitioners, students and policy professionals.
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