Ghana’s headline VAT rate is 15%. That is not what you pay: two levies are charged alongside it, and together they take the total to 20%.

The rules changed on 1 January 2026, when the Value Added Tax Act 2025 (Act 1151) came into force. If you learned how Ghanaian VAT works before then, most of what you learned about the levies is now out of date.

The stack

On a standard-rated supply, since 1 January 2026:

Charge Rate Charged on
VAT 15% The price before tax
NHIL 2.5% The price before tax
GETFund levy 2.5% The price before tax

All three are charged on the same base, so nothing compounds. The effective rate is simply their sum: 20%.

On a purchase of ₵1,000 before tax, that is ₵200 of tax - the same illustration GRA uses on its own VAT page.

Ghana VAT and levies calculator

Add or remove Ghanaian VAT, NHIL, GETFund and the COVID-19 levy, and see why the effective rate is higher than the headline 15%.

What changed in 2026

Act 1151 replaced the Value Added Tax Act 2013 (Act 870). The changes that reach an ordinary buyer or a small business:

  • The COVID-19 Health Recovery Levy was abolished. It was 1%, introduced in 2021.
  • The levies no longer compound. Under the old law NHIL, GETFund and the COVID levy were added to the price first, and VAT was charged on that larger figure. Now all three are charged on the same base.
  • NHIL and GETFund became deductible as input tax, which matters to VAT-registered businesses: the levies they pay on purchases can now be offset, like VAT itself.
  • The registration threshold for businesses dealing in goods rose to ₵750,000.
  • The VAT Flat Rate Scheme was abolished, along with the flat rate on immovable property.

— GRA’s summary of the VAT reforms — GRA’s notice to VAT-registered taxpayers

What the levies fund

  • NHIL funds the NHIS. This is why national health insurance costs so little at the point of registration: you have been paying for it all year at every till.
  • GETFund funds education infrastructure, largely tertiary.

Who must register

For a business that deals in goods, registration is compulsory once annual turnover exceeds ₵750,000.

GRA states that threshold for businesses dealing in goods. If you supply services, do not assume it applies to you - confirm your position with GRA before you decide not to register.

Below the threshold you may register voluntarily, which is worth considering if your customers are VAT-registered businesses that can reclaim the tax, or if you have significant input tax to recover. Since 2026 that input tax includes the levies.

Flat-rate traders

If you were registered under the abolished VAT Flat Rate Scheme and your turnover is below the new threshold, GRA’s guidance is that you stay registered until the Commissioner-General de-registers you. You can ask your tax office to determine your status.

Zero-rated and exempt

Zero-rated supplies carry VAT at 0%, and the supplier can still recover input tax. Exports are the main category. A zero-rated supply also carries a zero rate of NHIL and GETFund.

Exempt supplies carry no VAT, and the supplier cannot recover input tax. The exempt list includes many basic foodstuffs, medical services and supplies, educational services, and certain financial services.

The distinction matters enormously to a business and not at all to a consumer.

Filing

VAT-registered businesses file monthly, accounting for VAT, NHIL and GETFund on the same return.

  • Output tax is what you charged customers
  • Input tax is what you paid suppliers, now including the levies
  • You remit the difference, or carry forward a credit

Filing runs through the GRA taxpayers’ portal. Late filing attracts penalties, and they accumulate.

Issue proper VAT invoices. A customer cannot reclaim input tax without one, and GRA will disallow your own claims without supporting invoices.

What this means as a consumer

Every standard-rated purchase carries 20% in tax, a little less than before 2026, when the compounding and the COVID levy pushed the effective rate higher.

Consumption taxes fall hardest on people who spend most of what they earn, which is most people. That is a policy argument rather than a practical one, but it is the reason VAT reform is a perennial Ghanaian political topic - and why it was reformed.

Other taxes worth knowing

  • Corporate income tax: 25%
  • Withholding tax on services: 7.5% — Freelancing in Ghana
  • Withholding tax on residential rent: 8%
  • Withholding tax on dividends: 8%
  • Stamp duty at incorporation: 1% of stated capital — Registering a business

The E-Levy on mobile money transfers was repealed in 2025 and no longer applies. — Mobile money

Rates checked against GRA’s VAT page and its notice to VAT-registered taxpayers on 22 September 2026.