President William Ruto has signed the controversial Finance Bill 2023, which received the National Assembly’s endorsement last week. The bill was signed into law on Monday morning at State House, Nairobi.

The bill successfully passed its third reading following a thorough debate in the National Assembly. Kenyans will now faced increased financial burdens to support the government’s inaugural budget as a result of the bill.

The bill attracted 87 proposed ammendments, with some of them gaining approval during a late-night session on Tuesday.

One of the changes was the adoption of a 16% VAT on gasoline, doubling the previous rate of 8%.

With the exception of Githunguri MP Gathoni Wamuchomba, the bill received support from 184 Mps, primarily from Kenya Kwanza, while 88 MPs from Azimio opposed the ammendment.

Another point of contention, the Housing levy, initially proposed at 3% of gross pay, was ultimately passed after being revised to 1.5% and converted into tax. The original plan was to create a savings account that Kenyans could access after a seven-year period.

Digital creators will now be sujected to a 5% tax, a decrease from the originally proposed 15%.

Furthermore, the bill introduces a 12.5% withholding tax on betting and a 16% withholdling tax on insurance.