In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires
"amateur sporting association"
means an association whose sole or main object is to foster or control any athletic sport or game and whose members consist only of amateur sports persons or affiliated associations, the members of which consist only of amateur sports persons;
"approved"
means approved by the Minister under regulations made under section
151
;
"assessed loss"
has the meaning in section
36
;
(a)
the ascertainment of the chargeable income of, and the amount of tax payable on it by, a taxpayer for a year of income under this Act;
(b)
the ascertainment of the rental income of, and the amount of tax payable on it by, an individual for a year of income under this Act;
(c)
the ascertainment of the amount of penal tax payable by a person under this Act; or
(d)
any decision of the Commissioner General which, under this Act, is subject to objection and appeal;
"associate"
has the meaning in section
3
;
"beneficial owner"
means the natural person who ultimately owns or controls a customer or the natural person on whose behalf a transaction is conducted and includes a person who exercises ultimate control over a legal person or arrangement and-
(a)
in relation to a legal person includes-
(i)
the natural person who either directly or indirectly holds at least ten percent of shares or voting rights of the legal person;
(ii)
the natural person who exercises control of the legal person through other means including personal or financial superiority; and
(iii)
the natural person who has power to make or influence decisions of a legal person;
(b)
in relation to trusts includes-
(iv)
the beneficiary or the individual benefitting from the trust who is yet to be determined; and
(v)
any other natural person exercising ultimate control of the trust; and
(c)
in relation to other legal arrangements similar to trusts, the natural person who holds positions equivalent to those referred to in subparagraph (b);
"building society"
means a building society registered under the Building Societies Act;
"business"
includes any trade, profession, vocation or adventure in the nature of trade, but does not include employment;
"business asset"
means an asset which is used or held ready for use in a business, and includes any asset held for sale in a business and any asset of a partnership or company;
(a)
in the case of a debtor-
(i)
a debt obligation, the proceeds of which are used to acquire a business asset or to incur an expense of a business;
(ii)
a debt obligation arising, as a result of being given time to pay, on the acquisition of a business asset or the incurring of an expense of a business; or
(iii)
any debt obligation of a partnership or company; or
(b)
in the case of a creditor, any debt obligation owed to the creditor that was entered into or arose in the course of the creditor's business;
"business income"
has the meaning in section
18
;
"chargeable income"
has the meaning in section
15
;
"chargeable trust income"
has the meaning in section
69
;
(a)
a natural person who is a citizen of a Partner State of the East African Community; and
(b)
a company or a body of persons incorporated under the laws of a Partner State of the East African Community in which at least fifty-one percent of the shares are held by a person who is a citizen of a Partner State of the East African Community;
"collective investment scheme"
has the meaning assigned to it by section 2 of the Collective Investment Schemes Act;
"Commissioner General"
means the Commissioner General appointed under the Uganda Revenue Authority Act;
"company"
means a body of persons corporate or unincorporate, whether created or recognised under the law in force in Uganda or elsewhere, and a unit trust, but does not include any other trust or a partnership;
"consideration"
includes, the total amount in money or of payment in kind, paid or payable for the supply of goods, services or sale of land by any person, directly or indirectly, including any duties, levies, fees, and charges other than tax paid or payable on, or by reason of, the supply, reduced by any discounts or rebates allowed and accounted for at the time of the supply or sale;
"cost base", in relation to an asset, has the meaning in section
50
;
"court"
means a court of competent jurisdiction;
"currency point"
has the value assigned to it in Schedule 1 to this Act;
"debenture"
includes any debenture stock, mortgage, mortgage stock, loan, loan stock or any similar instrument acknowledging indebtedness, whether secured or unsecured;
"debt obligation"
means an obligation to make a repayment of money to another person, including accounts payable and the obligations arising under promissory notes, bills of exchange and bonds;
"dependent", in relation to a member of a retirement fund, means a spouse of the member, any child, including an adopted child, of the member who is under the age of eighteen years or any other relative of the member who the Commissioner General is satisfied relies on the member for support;
"depreciable asset"
means any plant or machinery, or any implement, utensil or similar article, which is wholly or partly used, or held ready for use, by a person in the production of income included in gross income and which is likely to lose value because of wear and tear, or obsolescence;
"disposal"
has the meaning in section
49
;
(a)
where a company issues debentures or redeemable preference shares to a shareholder-
(i)
in respect of which the shareholder gave no consideration, an amount equal to the greater of the nominal or redeemable value of the debentures or shares; or
(ii)
in respect of which the shareholder gave consideration which is less than the greater of the nominal or redeemable value, an amount equal to the excess;
(b)
any distribution upon redemption or cancellation of a share, or made in the course of liquidation, in excess of the nominal value of the share redeemed, cancelled or subject to liquidation;
(c)
in the case of a partial return of capital, any payment made in excess of the amount by which the nominal value of the shares was reduced;
(d)
in the case of a reconstruction of a company, any payment made in respect of the shares in the company in excess of the nominal value of the shares before the reconstruction;
(e)
the amount of any loan, the amount of any payment for an asset or services, the value of any asset or services provided, or the amount of any debt obligation released, by a company to, or in favour of, a shareholder of the company or an associate of a shareholder to the extent to which the transaction is, in substance, a distribution of profits, but does not include a distribution made by a building society;
(f)
the issue of bonus shares to shareholders; however, bonus shares shall only be taxable upon disposal; or
(g)
the payment of the excess of the return on investment in the bond to the bond holder under Islamic financial business for each payment period over the interest as defined in paragraph (f) in the definition of the term "interest" in this section;
"employee"
means an individual engaged in employment;
"employer"
means a person who employs or remunerates an employee;
(a)
the position of an individual in the employment of another person;
(b)
a directorship of a company;
(c)
a position entitling the holder to a fixed or ascertainable remuneration; or
(d)
the holding or acting in any public office;
"employment income"
has the meaning in section
19
;
"exempt organisation"
means any company, institution or irrevocable trust-
(i)
an amateur sporting association;
(ii)
a religious, charitable, educational institution or research institution whose object is not for profit; or
(iii)
a labour union, an association of employees, an association of employers registered under any law of Uganda, or an association established for the purpose of promoting farming, mining, tourism, manufacturing or commerce and industry in Uganda;
(iv)
a body established by law for the purpose of regulating the conduct of professionals; and
(b)
which has been issued with a written ruling by the Commissioner General currently in force stating that it is an exempt organisation; and
(c)
none of the income or assets of which confers, or may confer, a private benefit on any person; or
(d)
the National Medical Stores;
"farming"
means pastoral, agricultural, plantation, horticultural or other similar operations;
"financial institution"
means any person carrying on the business of receiving funds from the public or from members through the acceptance of money deposits repayable upon demand, after a fixed period, or after notice, or any similar operation through the sale or placement of bonds, certificates, notes or other securities, and the use of such funds either in whole or part for loans, investments or any other operation authorised either by law or by customary banking practices, for the account and at the risk of the person doing such business;
"foreign-source income"
means any income which is not derived from sources in Uganda;
"gross income"
has the meaning in section
17
;
"gross turnover", in relation to a resident taxpayer, for a year of income, means-
(a)
the amount shown in the recognised accounts of the taxpayer as the gross proceeds derived in carrying on a business or businesses during the year of income, including the gross proceeds arising from the disposal of trading stock, without deduction for expenditures or losses incurred in deriving that amount; and
(b)
the amount, if any, shown in the recognised accounts of the taxpayer as the amount by which the sum of the gains derived by the taxpayer during the year of income from the disposal of business assets, other than trading stock, exceeds the losses incurred by the taxpayer during the year in respect of the disposal of such assets;
"incapacitated person"
means a resident individual adjudged under a law in Uganda to be suffering from mental illness;
"incapacitated person's trust"
means a trust established for the benefit of an incapacitated person;
"industrial building"
means any building which is wholly or partly used, or held ready for use, by a person in-
(a)
manufacturing operations;
(b)
research and development into improved or new methods of manufacture;
(d)
an approved hotel business;
(e)
an approved hospital; or
(f)
an approved commercial building;
(a)
any payment, including a discount or premium, made under a debt obligation which is not a return of capital;
(b)
any swap or other payments functionally equivalent to interest;
(c)
any commitment, guarantee or service fee paid in respect of a debt obligation or swap agreement;
(d)
a distribution by a building society;
(e)
any payment, including a discount or premium, made under sale-based financing or lease-based financing under Islamic financial business;
(f)
any payment as the excess of the total amount paid by a bond issuer over and above the amount received from a bond holder under Islamic financial business for each payment period calculated at a rate not exceeding the rate determined by the Bank of Uganda and does not include dividends; or
(g)
a partner's share of partnership income derived from a partnership arrangement under Islamic financial business;
"Islamic financial business"
means financial business undertaken by a person that conforms to Shari'ah principles and includes-
(a)
the business of receiving property into profit sharing investment accounts or of managing such accounts;
(b)
any other business of a person which involves or is intended to involve the entry into one or more contracts under Shari'ah or otherwise carried out or purported to be carried out in accordance with Shari'ah principles including-
(i)
equity or partnership financing;
(ii)
lease-based financing;
(iii)
sale-based financing;
(iv)
currency exchange contracts; or
(c)
the purchase of bills of exchange, certificates of Islamic deposit or other negotiable instruments;
(d)
the acceptance or guarantee of any liability, obligation or duty of any person; and
(e)
the business of providing finance by all means, including through the acquisition, disposal or leasing of assets or through the provision of services which have similar economic effect and are economically equivalent to any other financial business;
"life insurance business"
has the meaning in section
16(3)
;
"listed institution"
means an institution listed in Schedule 2 to this Act;
"local authority"
means any public body established under a law of Uganda and having control over the expenditure of revenue derived from rates or taxes imposed by law upon the residents of the areas for which that body is established;
"local council"
has the same meaning as in the Local Governments Act;
"manufacturing"
means the substantial transformation of tangible movable property, including power generation and water supply;
"mineral"
has the same meaning as in the Mining and Minerals Act;
"mining operations"
includes every method or process by which any mineral is won from the soil or from any substance or constituent of the soil;
"Minister"
means the Minister responsible for finance;
"natural resource payment"
means-
(a)
a payment, including a premium or like payment, made as consideration for the right to take minerals or a living or non-living resource from the land; or
(b)
a payment calculated in whole or in part by reference to the quantity or value of minerals or a living or non-living resource taken from the land;
"nominal value", in relation to a share or debenture, means the paid-up amount of the share or face value of the debenture, including any premium paid in respect of the share or debenture;
"non-resident person"
has the meaning in section
14
;
"partnership"
means an association of persons carrying on business for joint profit, and includes an equity or partnership financing under Islamic financial business;
"payment"
includes any amount paid or payable in cash or kind, and any other means of conferring value or benefit on a person;
"person"
includes an individual, a partnership, a trust, a company, a retirement fund, a government, a political subdivision of a government and a listed institution;
"property income"
has the meaning in section
20
;
"provisional taxpayer"
means a person liable for provisional tax under section
121
;
"relative", in relation to an individual, means-
(a)
an ancestor, a descendant of any of the grandparents, or an adopted child, of the individual, or of a spouse of the individual; or
(b)
a spouse of the individual or of any person specified in paragraph (a) of this definition;
"rent"
means any payment, including a premium or like amount, made as consideration for the use or occupation of, or the right to use or occupy, land or buildings;
"rental income", in relation to a person for a year of income, means the total amount of rent derived by the person for the year of income from the lease of immovable property in Uganda with the deduction of any expenditures and losses incurred in respect of the property;
"resident company"
has the meaning in section
10
;
"resident individual"
has the meaning in section
9
;
"resident partnership"
has the meaning in section
12
;
"resident person"
means a resident individual, resident company, resident partnership, resident trust, resident retirement fund, the Government of Uganda or a political subdivision of the Government of Uganda;
"resident retirement fund"
has the meaning in section
13
;
"resident taxpayer"
means a taxpayer who is a resident person;
"resident trust"
has the meaning in section
11
;
"retirement fund"
means a pension or provident fund established as a permanent fund maintained solely for either or both of the following purposes-
(a)
the provision of benefits for members of the fund in the event of retirement; or
(b)
the provision of benefits for dependents of members in the event of the death of the member;
(a)
any payment, including a premium or like amount, made as consideration for-
(i)
the use of, or right to use, any patent, design, trademark or copyright, or any model, pattern, plan, formula or process, or any property or right of a similar nature;
(ii)
the use of, or the right to use-
(A)
any motion picture film;
(B)
any video or audio material, whether stored on film, tape, disk or other medium, for use in connection with television or radio broadcasting; or
(C)
any sound recording or advertising matter connected with material referred to in subparagraph (a)(ii)(A) or (B) of this definition;
(iii)
the use of, or the right to use, or the receipt of, or right to receive, any video or audio material transmitted by satellite, cable, optic fibre or similar technology for use in connection with television, internet or radio broadcasting;
(iv)
the imparting of, or undertaking to impart, any scientific, technical, industrial or commercial knowledge or information;
(v)
the use of, or right to use, any tangible movable property;
(vi)
the rendering of, or the undertaking to render, assistance ancillary to a matter referred to in paragraph (a)(i) to (v) of this definition; or
(vii)
a total or partial forbearance with respect to a matter referred to in paragraph (a)(i) to (vi); or
(b)
any gain on the disposal of any right or property referred to in paragraph (a) of this definition;
"substituted year of income"
has the meaning in section
37
;
"swap agreement"
means an arrangement between a person who has incurred a debt obligation with a floating interest rate and a person who has incurred a debt obligation with a fixed interest rate under which the persons agree to exchange their interest obligations;
"swap payment"
means a payment made under a swap agreement;
"takaful"
means insurance business conducted in accordance with Shari'ah principles;
"tax"
means any tax imposed under this Act;
"tax-exempt employer"
means an employer whose income is exempt from tax;
"taxpayer"
means any person who derives an amount subject to tax under this Act and includes-
(a)
any person who incurs an assessed loss for a year of income; or
(b)
for the purposes of any provision relating to a return, any person required by this Act to furnish such a return;
"trading stock"
includes anything produced, manufactured, purchased or otherwise acquired for manufacture, sale or exchange, as well as consumable stores;
"transitional year of income"
has the meaning in section
37
;
"trust"
means any arrangement affecting property in relation to which there is a trustee;
(a)
any person appointed or constituted as such by act of the parties, by will, by order or declaration of any court or by operation of the law;
(b)
an executor, administrator, tutor or curator;
(c)
a liquidator or judicial manager;
(d)
any person having the administration or control of property subject to a trust;
(e)
any person acting in a fiduciary capacity;
(f)
any person having, either in a private or official capacity, the possession, direction, control or management of any property of a person under a legal disability; and
(g)
any person who manages assets under a private foundation or other similar arrangement;
"underlying ownership", in relation to a person other than an individual, means an interest held in, or over, the person directly or indirectly through interposed companies, partnerships or trusts by an individual or by a person not ultimately owned by individuals;
"unit trust"
means a unit trust registered or required to be registered as Parliament may by law prescribe;
"year of income"
means the period of twelve months ending on 30th June and includes a substituted year of income and a transitional year of income.
