Togo's Cost of Tax Breaks Rises 14.6% to 164.1 Bln CFA Francs in 2024

Public finance

Tuesday, 02 December 2025 12:50

Togo's Cost of Tax Breaks Rises 14.6% to 164.1 Bln CFA Francs in 2024

(Togo First) - Togo’s fiscal cost of tax expenditures rose to 164.1 billion CFA francs in 2024, up 14.6% from 143.2 billion CFA francs in 2023, according to a recent government report. The amount represents 18.6% of the state’s net revenue and 2.7% of GDP.

Tax expenditures, defined as revenue the government did not collect to support specific taxpayers or sectors, were assessed based on 695 preferential tax provisions contained in various laws. Of these, 506 measures, or 72.8%, could be quantified.

Most of the cost came from indirect taxes. Value-added tax accounted for 70.3 billion CFA francs, or 42.9% of the total. Corporate income tax followed at 42.8 billion CFA francs, equal to 26.1%.

Other revenue losses came from the statistical royalty at 21.5 billion CFA francs, customs duties at 20.7 billion CFA francs, the business license tax at 3.7 billion CFA francs and excise duties at 3.1 billion CFA francs.

Personal income tax on business and wage earnings contributed only 1.4 billion CFA francs, while the national solidarity levy and the property tax accounted for 0.5 billion and 0.2 billion CFA francs respectively.

Businesses were the main beneficiaries and received 50.6% of all tax advantages. Measures that applied to both businesses and households represented 42.7%. Public administrations and public-utility entities received 5.1%.

These preferential tax treatments include exemptions, deductions, tax credits and reduced rates. They are used by the government to encourage investment, support employment and strengthen social protection.

They also reduce budget revenue, which requires a balance between tax incentives and the need to raise public revenue. Togo’s revenue targets have increased steadily in recent years, driven by the Togo Revenue Authority, and are set at 1,208.4 billion CFA francs for 2024.

REFORMS OVERVIEW

STARTING A BUSINESS (more info)

At the fifteenth position, worldwide, and first in Africa, under the Starting a Business index of the 2020 Doing Business ranking, Togo sustains its reformative dynamics with more reforms….

ENFORCING CONTRACTS (more info)

Compared to some years ago when it was one of the lowest rankers under the Doing Business’ Enforcing Contracts indicator, Togo, leveraging many efforts to improve its business climate, was able to jump significantly on the index in the recent years... .

CONTRACT EXECUTION (more info)

Creation of special chambers of commerce for small debts • Creation of chambers of commerce at the Court of Appeal • Civil and commercial cases now handled by distinct clerks • Establishment of commercial courts in Lomé and Kara • Lawyers and bailiffs now have access to the FORSETI COMMERCIAL platform • A maximum period of 100 days was fixed to settle a commercial dispute .

TRADING ACROSS BORDERS (more info)

In comparison to previous years,Togo has significantly improved its ranking under the“Trading across borders” indicator by adopting multiple reforms that focus mainly on the digitization and reduction in delays, for import and export procedures related to import and export.

In comparison to previous years, Togo has significantly improved its ranking on the “Trading across borders” index by adopting multiple reforms that focus mainly on the digitalization and reduction in delays, for import and export procedures related to import and export.

CONSTRUCTION PERMIT (more info)

After moving from the 133rd to 127th place under the 2020 Doing Business’ construction permit index, Togo intends to reiterate this feat in the coming edition of the global ranking. To this end, it has introduced this year multiple reforms.

GETTING ELECTRICITY (more info)

Over the past two years, Togo’s ranking under the Doing Business’ Getting electricity and water indicator has increased consistently. Owing this performance to multiple reforms aimed at making it easier for businesses to access power and water, Lomé plans to introduce even more reforms this year to keep up its improvements.

REGISTERING A PROPERTY (more info)

Out of all the 'Doing Business’ indicators, Property Registration is where Togo has improved the most since 2018. Indeed, after spending years in the lowest part of this ranking, the country now seeks to beat Rwanda which is the best performer on this index in Africa. To do so, Lomé has been introducing many reforms, with the latest batch implemented this year.

PUBLIC PROCUREMENT (more info)

From professionalization to digitization, through legislative regulations, Togo’s public procurement framework is constantly being modernized. Several reforms have been implemented to improve the sector much to the benefit of the private sector, which is the focus of the National Development Plan.

PAYING TAXES AND DUTIES (more info)

To improve its business environment, Togo introduced some important reforms related to the payment of tax and duties. From the replacement of some taxes to the cancellation of others through exemptions, the country has only one objective: offer the most attractive tax framework to investors and economic operators. To achieve this, the authorities relied on digitization.