Ethiopia

Corporate - Income determination

Last reviewed - 17 November 2023

Taxable income is the amount of income subject to tax after the deduction of all expenses and other deductible items allowed under the tax law. See the general principle on deductibility of expenses in the Deductions section.

Capital gains

See Capital gains tax (CGT) in the Other taxes section.

Dividend income

Payment of dividend to a resident or non-resident person is subject to WHT at the rate of 10% of the gross amount.

Interest income

Similar to dividend, payment of interest to a resident or non-resident is subject to 10% WHT. However, interest payment from a savings deposit with a financial institution to a resident or non-resident person is subject to 5% WHT.

Royalty income

Royalty payments to a resident or non-resident are subject to 5% WHT.

Foreign currency exchange gains/losses

All net gains or losses arising from transactions in foreign exchange are considered to be taxable income or deductible losses in the year in which they arise. Effective 2021, a person is allowed to either capitalise and claim tax depreciation on foreign exchange loss incurred in acquiring a capital asset or deduct realised foreign exchange loss incurred in relation to operating expenses.

Prior to 2021, taxpayers were only required to offset realised foreign exchange losses against realised foreign exchange gains as opposed to deducting the losses against the business income.