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Blog / Rwanda

Why RRA rejects your expenses, and how EBM receipts fix it

You spent the money. Without the right receipt, you also pay tax on it.

29 September 2026 · 7 min read

Short answer: in Rwanda, a business expense is safest to deduct when it is backed by an EBM (Electronic Billing Machine) receipt that shows your company's TIN. A receipt without your TIN, a handwritten note, or no receipt at all can be refused when RRA reviews your return, so you pay tax on money you really spent.

How good expenses get lost

  • The driver buys fuel and keeps the receipt in the truck.
  • Staff pay a supplier by MoMo and never ask for the EBM receipt.
  • The receipt is issued, but to a person, not to the company TIN.
  • Receipts sit in a drawer until the end of the year, faded and incomplete.
We only found out at filing time. By then the supplier was not answering.
A story accountants tell often

A routine that keeps everything deductible

Every purchase, every time

  • Give the supplier your company TIN before they print
  • Photograph the EBM receipt the same day
  • Attach it to the bill or expense claim, not to an email
  • Record withholding tax when the supplier is subject to it
  • Before the 15th, check that every bill of last month has its receipt

And on the sales side

The same discipline protects your customers. Every invoice you send should carry its EBM receipt, so your clients can deduct what they paid you. In KromaOS the invoice and its EBM receipt live together, and VAT returns are built from them.

A day, after

The 14th of the month, calm

  1. 10:00Open the tax returns. Sales VAT and purchase VAT are already added up from the documents.
  2. 10:15Two bills are missing a receipt. Two messages to suppliers, done before lunch.
  3. 11:00File. Nobody worked late on the 15th.

Questions people ask

What is an EBM receipt?

A receipt issued by an Electronic Billing Machine certified by RRA. It records the sale for tax purposes and can show the buyer's TIN.

Do I need my TIN on the receipt?

To claim the purchase as a business expense and its input VAT, the receipt should identify your business. Ask suppliers to enter your TIN at the till.

Can I fix a missing receipt later?

Sometimes, if the supplier reissues it. It is much easier the same week than at year end.

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