Tanzania: the Government e-Payment Gateway (GePG) and TRA systems

Last checked: 20 October 2026 · Countries

Tanzania collects public money through the Government Electronic Payment Gateway (GePG), a central system implemented by the Ministry of Finance and Planning ². The Public Finance Act 2001, as amended in 2017, requires that all public money be collected electronically through GePG ². Each government bill carries a control number that the payer uses to pay through banks, mobile money or cards ³. As of 29 February 2024, 1,011 public institutions were connected ⁴. The Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA) runs its own taxpayer portals ⁷.

System: Government Electronic Payment Gateway (GePG) ¹
Implemented by: Ministry of Finance and Planning ²
Legal basis: Public Finance Act 2001, as amended by the Finance Act 2017 ²
Implementing circular: Treasury Circular No. 3 of 4 September 2017 ²
Connected institutions: 1,011 service providers, 28 banks, 7 mobile network operators, as of 29 February 2024 ⁴
Revenue authority: Tanzania Revenue Authority, operating since 1 July 1996 ⁷

What GePG is and who built it

GePG is described as "a centralized system, connected to all available electronic revenue collection channels". It handles electronic transactions from the public to the government and the reverse ³.

The Government of Tanzania, through the Ministry of Finance and Planning, implemented GePG "to improve the revenue collection management" ². Its stated aims are an efficient payment platform, real-time visibility of revenue data and standard collection across government institutions ². The GePG pages name no private operator, and support runs through hazina.go.tz addresses at Treasury Square, Dodoma ^1,3.

An IMF working paper published in 2023 says the gateway, run by the Ministry of Finance, "provides e-payment collection services to all government agencies" and accepts online banking, credit cards and mobile money ⁸.

Legal basis

GePG followed amendments to the Public Finance Act of 2001 made on 30 June 2017, under which "all Public Monies are required to be collected through GePG" ¹. The GePG about page cites the Finance Act 2017 as the amending law ².

Treasury Circular No. 3 of 4 September 2017 directed Permanent Secretaries to route all government revenue through GePG ². The ministry published a GePG Management Framework in 2018 ⁶.

How payment works

A government institution issues a bill through a GePG billing interface, such as a point-of-sale device, a service provider portal, the GePG portal, or SMS and USSD ³. Each bill carries a control number. The payer quotes it to pay ³.

Banks, for example CRDB, NMB, TPB and PBZ ³.
Mobile money, for example M-Pesa, Tigopesa, Airtel Money, Eazy Pesa and T-Pesa ³.
Online cards, VISA and Mastercard ³.
Bank transfers through TISS or SWIFT ³.

What changed for payers

The ministry's 2018 framework says that before GePG there were no standard collection procedures, some institutions relied on agents, and others collected cash physically ⁶. It describes the earlier approach as risky, opaque and costly ⁶.

Bills can be set as partial, exact or full payment types. Partial bills accept instalments until the billed amount is reached. Overpayments are accepted under partial or full types and the service provider handles refunds ³. Payers can check bill details through the GePG mobile app or website ⁵. GePG pages do not state any fee charged to payers ^3,5.

Tanzania Revenue Authority systems

TRA was established by Act of Parliament No. 11 of 1995 and began operations on 1 July 1996 ⁷. Its website lists e-services including the Taxpayer Portal (IDRAS), TaxConnect, the TANESW single window, the Electronic Tax Stamp management system and electronic fiscal devices (EFD and VFD) ⁷.

Scale

Participant	Number as of 29 February 2024
Service providers and public institutions ⁴	1,011 ⁴
Banks ⁴	28 ⁴
Payment switch (Umoja) ⁴	1 ⁴
Mobile network operators ⁴	7 ⁴

Common questions

What is a GePG control number?

It is the number attached to each government bill issued through GePG. The payer uses it to pay at a bank, by mobile money or by card ³.

Is GePG compulsory for government institutions?

Yes. The Public Finance Act as amended in 2017 requires all public money to be collected electronically through GePG ².

Who runs GePG?

The Ministry of Finance and Planning implemented GePG and provides its registration, integration and support services ^2,3.

Does GePG charge payers a fee?

The GePG FAQ and services pages do not mention any fee charged to payers ^3,5.

Rules and fees change. Check the official site linked above before you apply or pay. Spotted an error? Email [email protected] with the official link.

Sources

How governments digitise the collection of taxes, fees and levies
The three main models for digital revenue collection, examples from Tanzania, Kenya, Rwanda and South Sudan, and what IMF and World Bank material says.
Kenya: iTax, eCitizen and government digital payments
How Kenya collects taxes through KRA iTax and fees through eCitizen, who operates eCitizen, the KSh 50 convenience fee and the Auditor-General's audit.
Rwanda: IremboGov, the Irembo partnership and RRA e-Tax
How Rwanda runs IremboGov through a 25-year public-private partnership, what services cost, and how RRA e-Tax handles tax declarations.
South Sudan: the SSRA e-tax portal and Crawford Capital
South Sudan's 2021 e-tax portal, the role of Crawford Capital, the UN commission findings, US visa restrictions and the government response.