TaxLawGHby MSL Business School
MSL Business SchoolTax-system structure
Survey of the Ghanaian Tax System
The report surveys Ghana's tax institutions, revenue structure and selected tax rules. Its principal revenue year is 2022, while parts of the legal description were updated for publication in 2024.
Analysed and explained by MSL Business School through TaxLawGH.
Report in brief
A Survey of the Ghanaian Tax System (2023)
The report surveys Ghana's tax institutions, revenue structure and selected tax rules. Its principal revenue year is 2022, while parts of the legal description were updated for publication in 2024.
Evidence boundary: The report is a historical system survey. It helps explain structure and trends but does not replace the legislation, rates and administrative rules applicable today.
How the report works
Method and evidence base.
- Long-run comparison of Ghana's tax revenue and tax mix from 2000 to 2022.
- Comparison with other lower-middle-income countries using available international datasets.
- Institutional and legal overview of the principal tax heads and revenue bodies.
- Regression-based comparison of selected tax categories after accounting for observable country characteristics.
Principal findings
What the report's evidence shows.
2022 tax-to-GDP ratio
The survey records tax revenue equal to 13.8% of GDP in 2022, about six percentage points above 2000 but with limited progress after 2017.
Tax mix shifted
Corporate income tax, personal income tax and VAT together accounted for nearly 70% of tax revenue in 2022, compared with about 57% in 2000.
Border share declined
Taxes collected on imported goods fell from about 54% of total tax revenue in 2000 to about 33% in 2022. Import duties alone fell from roughly 18% to 13%.
Sixteenth in the reported comparison
The report places Ghana sixteenth in its 2022 lower-middle-income comparison. Its executive summary says 28 countries had available data, while the detailed international-context section says 26 and cautions that the sample is not necessarily representative.
Different tax-head performance
Its comparative model suggests corporate income tax performed relatively strongly, while personal income tax and general sales taxes collected less than might be expected after accounting for selected country characteristics.
Repository for further analysis
The survey describes itself as a repository of key information and a first step for identifying good practices, challenges and areas for reform. Its findings support further analysis rather than establishing a current-law conclusion.
Interpretation limits
Where the evidence should not be stretched.
Connection to current tax law
Use the study for analysis and the law for present treatment.
The report is a historical system survey. It helps explain structure and trends but does not replace the legislation, rates and administrative rules applicable today.
Official report
A Survey of the Ghanaian Tax System (2023)
Institute for Fiscal Studies, Ministry of Finance and TaxDev
TaxLawGH has preserved the source copy used for this analysis while the official Ministry link remains the public source destination.
Frequently asked questions
Reading this report safely
Is this report a statement of current Ghana tax law?
No. It is a historical analytical report. Current treatment requires the legislation, amendments and commencement rules now applicable.
Who published the underlying report?
The report is published in the Ministry of Finance revenue-report library and attributes the work to Institute for Fiscal Studies, Ministry of Finance and TaxDev.
Can the report's estimates be applied to an individual taxpayer?
No. Aggregate and model-based findings explain the system or a historical period; they do not calculate a present taxpayer's liability.