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Radabet tax explained: Finance Act 2025, 5% + 5% with worked examples

How the Finance Act 2025 deposit and withdrawal excise applies on Radabet, why no withholding is charged on winnings, and how it compares to the pre-2023 rules.

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by Reviewed by Michael Mwangi 6 min read Updated 20 August 2026

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GRA-licensed casino, Aviator, and sportsbook. M-PESA paybill 4966000.

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The current tax structure, plainly

Two taxes are visible to you as the punter.

  • Deposit excise: 5%. Applied when you deposit via M-PESA paybill 4966000 (or any deposit route). Deducted from what lands in your wallet.
  • Withdrawal excise: 5%. Applied when you withdraw. Deducted from what reaches your M-PESA.

Two taxes are invisible to you but paid by the operator on their side.

  • Gaming tax on gross gaming revenue (operator margin after paying out winners).
  • Corporate income tax on the operator's profit.

These operator-side taxes are baked into the odds and pricing you see. You do not pay them directly, but they shape the operator margin on every market.

Worked examples

Example 1: small deposit, small withdrawal.

  • Deposit KES 200 to paybill 4966000.
  • M-PESA charge: KES 0 (below the fee band).
  • 5% deposit excise: KES 10.
  • Wallet credits: KES 190.
  • Bet KES 100 at odds 2.0, win KES 200.
  • Wallet after: KES 190 - 100 + 200 = KES 290.
  • Withdraw KES 290.
  • 5% withdrawal excise: KES 14.50.
  • M-PESA receives: KES 275.50.
  • Total tax paid: KES 24.50 on a KES 200 deposit and KES 290 withdrawal.

Example 2: bigger deposit, bigger win.

  • Deposit KES 5,000.
  • M-PESA charge: KES 55 (upper mid band).
  • 5% deposit excise: KES 250.
  • Wallet credits: KES 4,750.
  • Bet KES 2,000 at odds 5.0, win KES 10,000.
  • Wallet after: KES 4,750 - 2,000 + 10,000 = KES 12,750.
  • Withdraw KES 12,750.
  • 5% withdrawal excise: KES 637.50.
  • M-PESA receives: KES 12,112.50.
  • Total government tax paid: KES 887.50 on a KES 5,000 deposit and KES 12,750 withdrawal.

Example 3: churning without withdrawing (re-betting winnings).

  • Deposit KES 1,000. Wallet credits KES 950.
  • Bet, win, bet again, win, bet again, lose. Wallet balance ends at KES 500.
  • Withdraw KES 500.
  • 5% withdrawal excise: KES 25.
  • M-PESA receives: KES 475.
  • Total tax paid: KES 75 on the one deposit and one withdrawal. Re-bets did not add tax.

Why no withholding on winnings

For several years Kenya operated a 20% withholding on gross winnings that operators deducted before paying out. That created two frictions: winners felt like the system was taxing luck twice, and small wins were disproportionately affected.

Finance Act 2025 collapsed the whole scheme into deposit and withdrawal excises. The design logic is that taxing the money-flow rails is simpler to administer than taxing individual bet outcomes, and it captures every operator on the same terms rather than depending on withholding compliance.

Practical effect for punters: winning a KES 100,000 bet now lands the full KES 100,000 in your Radabet wallet (minus the operator margin already priced into the odds). Only when you withdraw does the 5% excise apply. That is a materially better structure for medium- and large-win users than the withholding regime.

How it compares to older rules

  • Pre-2023: Excise duty on stake + 20% withholding on winnings + operator taxes. Effective consumer tax ate 20%+ of every winning bet.
  • 2023-early 2025: Modified regime with lower stake excise and withholding still in play; rules changed several times.
  • Finance Act 2025 (current): 5% deposit + 5% withdrawal. No stake tax, no withholding. Simpler, lower friction for regular play.

The consumer wins on volatility of individual bets (no withholding to eat into big wins), but the money-flow rails are consistently taxed. Whether the total tax bill is higher or lower for a given punter depends on their deposit/withdrawal frequency vs. their winning volatility.

FAQ

What tax do I pay on Radabet?

Under Finance Act 2025: 5% excise on every deposit, deducted before funds land in your wallet, and 5% excise on every withdrawal, deducted from the payout. No stake tax on individual bets. No withholding tax on winnings.

Where did the 20% withholding tax go?

Finance Act 2025 removed the 20% withholding tax on betting winnings that had been in force for several years. It was replaced with the flat 5% deposit and 5% withdrawal excise model. That means big wins now leave the operator gross of a withholding cut.

Is the deposit excise a Radabet fee?

No. It is a statutory tax collected by every GRA-licensed operator in Kenya. Radabet remits it to KRA. Every other Kenyan operator (Betika, SportPesa, Odibets, Mozzartbet, etc.) applies it identically.

What is the total effective tax on a bet?

Depends on what you do with your winnings. If you deposit KES 1,000, bet, win KES 2,000, and withdraw all KES 2,000, you pay 5% on the deposit (KES 50) and 5% on the withdrawal (KES 100). Total tax paid: KES 150. If you re-bet without withdrawing, only the deposit tax applies at that point.

Do M-PESA charges count as tax?

No. M-PESA charges are Safaricom transaction fees, not taxes. They come out on the Safaricom side of the transaction and are shown in the M-PESA SMS. They are separate from the Finance Act excise.

Do I owe income tax on winnings on top of the excise?

Under the current structure, betting winnings are not subject to income tax for the punter. The operator pays gaming taxes on the gross gaming revenue; the punter pays only the deposit and withdrawal excises via the operator. Tax law is subject to change; consult a Kenyan tax professional if your winnings are material.

How does the tax compare to pre-2023?

Pre-2023 Kenya had a 20% excise on stake AND a 20% withholding on winnings, plus operator taxes. That double taxation crushed small punters. Finance Act 2023 rationalised things, and Finance Act 2025 landed on the current 5%/5% model with no stake or withholding tax. Net effect on the average punter: less friction per bet, more visibility at deposit and withdrawal.

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Compare operators

GRA-licensed Kenyan operators

18+ only. Play responsibly. Kenya helpline 1196.

BK

Betika

GRA-licensed

Kenya-founded operator. Paybill 290290, M-PESA deposits and withdrawals, Grand and Midweek jackpots.

Visit Betika
SP

SportPesa

GRA-licensed

Kenya-founded operator. Mega Jackpot, M-PESA deposits via paybill, app and web.

Visit SportPesa
SB

Sportybet

GRA-licensed

Pan-African operator. Live betting, instant virtuals, M-PESA paybill deposits.

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HB

Helabet

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BetWinner-network operator. Wide market coverage, multi-language support.

Visit Helabet
OD

Odibets

GRA-licensed

Kenya-founded operator. Daily and weekly jackpots, Aviator, USSD betting.

Visit Odibets
BP

Betpawa

GRA-licensed

Low-stake-friendly operator. Airtel Money deposit angle, simple UX.

Visit Betpawa
MZ

Mozzartbet

GRA-licensed

European operator with KE licence. Daily Jackpot, sports and casino.

Visit Mozzartbet
RA

Radabet Kenya

GRA-licensed

GRA-licensed casino, Aviator, and sportsbook. M-PESA paybill 4966000.

Visit Radabet Kenya

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Ownership disclosure: paybillke.com is operated by Interconn Publishers. The site's owner has an ownership interest in Radabet. This relationship is disclosed on every page that discusses Radabet in a substantive way. Editorial coverage, verification status, and paybill rankings are set by the same rules that apply to every other operator; see the editorial process for the specifics.