Angola Tax and Accounting: IRT, VAT, and SAF-T Compliance

Business tax and accounting in Angola runs on a 25% corporate income tax, a 14% VAT with two regimes split at AOA 350 million in turnover, monthly payroll withholding for employee income tax and social security, and mandatory Portuguese-language bookkeeping under the Plano Geral de Contabilidade (PGC). The General Tax Administration (AGT) enforces a compact filing calendar between April and August, and invoicing rules that treat non-compliant invoices as if they were never issued.

Corporate Income Tax at 25%, Higher for Some Sectors

Imposto Industrial is the corporate tax. The flat rate is 25% on business profits. Resident companies are taxed on worldwide income; non-residents with a permanent establishment in Angola are taxed only on the profits tied to that establishment.1Belt and Road Initiative Tax Administration Capacity Building Working Group. Angola Tax and Accounting Requirements for Businesses

Three sectors pay more. Banking, insurance, and telecommunications are taxed at 35%. Oil and gas sits under its own regime entirely, with petroleum income tax at 50% or 65.75%, a 70% petroleum transaction tax on oil trading revenues, and a production tax of 20% on crude oil or 10% on natural gas.1Belt and Road Initiative Tax Administration Capacity Building Working Group. Angola Tax and Accounting Requirements for Businesses

Taxable income begins with accounting profit and is then adjusted for non-deductible costs and non-taxable revenue. Costs genuinely incurred to earn income are deductible, including staff costs, depreciation, and amortization. Angola does not have formal thin capitalization rules, but interest on shareholder loans is deductible only up to the average annual interest rate published by the National Bank of Angola (BNA). Tax losses carry forward for five years. Carrybacks are not allowed.

When to File and Pay

Companies under the General Regime file the annual CIT return by the last business day of May. Those under the Simplified Regime file by the last business day of April. General Regime taxpayers with sales or services not already subject to withholding must also make an advance CIT payment by the end of August, calculated at 2% of the first-half revenues from those transactions. That advance is credited against the final CIT liability.

VAT: Which Regime You Fall Into

Angola’s VAT (IVA) replaced the old consumption tax in 2019. The standard rate is 14%. Which regime you fall into depends on turnover.

The Standard Regime is mandatory once annual turnover or imports exceed AOA 350 million. You charge 14% VAT on sales, recover input VAT on purchases, and file monthly returns by the last working day of the month after the transaction period.

The Simplified Regime covers businesses between AOA 25 million and AOA 350 million. You don’t charge VAT on invoices. Instead, you pay the AGT 7% of the total consideration received on transactions that would otherwise carry VAT. Less paperwork, but no input VAT recovery.

Reduced rates apply in specific cases:

  • 5% on basic foodstuffs (meat, fish, eggs, vegetables, cereals, cooking oil, sugar, bread, milk, water, and salt, among others) and agricultural inputs.
  • 5% on imports and domestic transfers of industrial equipment by manufacturers, under the 2026 budget.
  • 7% on hotel and restaurant services, if the business uses certified electronic invoicing.
  • Exempt: books, certain medical products, and residential property leases.

The 2026 General State Budget also exempts transactions processed through authorized mobile payment and instant transfer platforms from both VAT and stamp duty.

Certified Electronic Invoicing

Mandatory e-invoicing is phasing in. From January 1, 2026, large companies must use AGT-certified invoicing software. All remaining companies must adopt certified e-invoicing by 2027. A transitional period ran October through December 2025. Invoices issued through non-certified software are treated as never issued, which triggers penalties and blocks the buyer from deducting the cost for CIT.

Payroll: IRT Withholding and Social Security

Employment income is taxed under the Imposto sobre o Rendimento do Trabalho (IRT) on a progressive scale. Monthly income up to AOA 100,000 is exempt; the top bracket begins at AOA 10 million per month and is taxed at 25% on the excess plus a fixed amount. Rates in between climb from 13% to 24.5% through eleven brackets.

Employers must run a pay-as-you-earn system: withhold IRT monthly and remit to the AGT by the end of the following month. Because IRT is a final tax, an employee whose only income is salary generally does not file a separate annual return.

Social security goes to the Instituto Nacional de Segurança Social (INSS). The employer pays 8% of gross salary; the employee pays 3%, for 11% combined.2Social Security Administration. Social Security Programs Throughout the World: Africa, 2019 – Angola The employee’s 3% is deducted from gross salary before IRT is applied.

An individual is a tax resident if they maintain a habitual residence in Angola on December 31, or spend more than 90 days in the country during the fiscal year. Residents are taxed on worldwide employment income; non-residents on Angolan-source income only.

Paying Non-Residents: Withholding and the PE Trap

Payments to foreign companies without an Angolan presence attract withholding tax at source. The rates:

  • Services: 6.5%, reduced from 15% by Law 27/22.
  • Dividends: 10%.
  • Royalties: 10%.
  • Interest on third-party loans: 15%.
  • Interest on shareholder loans: 10%.

These fall under the Investment Income Tax (Imposto sobre a Aplicação de Capitais). For non-residents without a permanent establishment, the withholding is typically final, so no further Angolan filing is required from them on that income.

The bigger exposure is creating a permanent establishment (PE) without meaning to. A PE arises from a fixed place of business such as a branch, office, or management location. Two time-based triggers catch companies that think they’re only briefly on the ground:

Once a PE exists, the entity is subject to the full 25% CIT on profits attributable to it. The 90-day threshold is short by international standards and catches many service providers off guard, particularly in oil and construction.

Angola’s treaty network is small. As of late 2025, only three double tax treaties are in force: Portugal, the United Arab Emirates, and China. Treaties with Cabo Verde, Mauritius, Rwanda, and Switzerland have been signed but are not yet effective. There is no treaty with the United States, the United Kingdom, or most EU countries other than Portugal, so businesses from those jurisdictions plan around domestic withholding rates.

Transfer Pricing

Related-party transactions must reflect the arm’s length principle, and the AGT can adjust taxable income if they do not. Any taxpayer with annual turnover above AOA 7 billion at year-end must prepare and submit transfer pricing documentation within six months of year-end (June 30 for calendar-year companies). Angola accepts only three methods: Comparable Uncontrolled Price, Resale-Minus, and Cost-Plus.4OECD. Angola Transfer Pricing Country Profile The transactional net margin method and profit split method are not part of the framework, which matters if your group applies them elsewhere.

Foreign Exchange Controls on Outbound Payments

All cross-border payments must go through the banking system. Financial institutions report international transactions to the BNA using standardized SWIFT messaging that includes the taxpayer identification number and a coded transaction purpose.

The Special Contribution for Foreign Exchange Operations (CEOC), reintroduced under Law 15/23, applies a 10% levy on foreign currency transfers abroad by legal entities for technical assistance, consulting, management services, and unilateral transactions. The rate is 2.5% for individuals. Exemptions cover dividend transfers, repayments of loan principal and associated interest, and direct payments to foreign health and education institutions.

Before processing a service payment to a non-resident, the bank must confirm the contract reflects arm’s length pricing. That validation step catches transfer pricing exposure that a company might otherwise overlook.

Accounting Standards and the SAF-T

Most companies prepare financial statements under the Plano Geral de Contabilidade (PGC), adopted by Presidential Decree 82/01.5IFRS Foundation. Angola – IFRS Standards Jurisdiction Profile Financial institutions supervised by the BNA use IFRS instead. Insurance companies and pension funds follow ARSEG rules.

The tax year is January 1 to December 31 for all companies. Records must be kept in Portuguese. Annual financial statements include a balance sheet, income statement, and cash flow statement, and must be submitted to the Commercial Register.

Both VAT regimes must file the Standard Audit File for Tax (SAF-T) with the AGT by April 10, covering the prior year. The SAF-T must include all invoices. Filing a SAF-T that omits invoices triggers the penalty for non-issuance of invoices, which runs 7% or 15% of the missing invoice value depending on the circumstances.

Statutory audit requirements apply to companies on the AGT’s Major Taxpayers list and those exceeding certain size thresholds. Even Simplified VAT Regime companies must maintain organized accounting under the PGC to qualify for the regime.

The Compliance Calendar

  • Monthly: Standard Regime VAT returns by the last working day of the following month; IRT withholding remitted by the end of the following month; social security contributions.
  • April 10: SAF-T for the prior year.
  • Last business day of April: CIT return, Simplified Regime.
  • Last business day of May: CIT return, General Regime.
  • June 30: Transfer pricing documentation (turnover above AOA 7 billion, calendar year).
  • Last business day of August: Advance CIT payment, General Regime.

Penalties, Appeals, and a Narrow Amnesty

Late invoices carry a fine of 0.2% of each invoice’s value. Invoices processed through non-certified software are treated as never issued, which can trigger autonomous taxation on the buyer and denial of the CIT deduction. Repeated invoicing failures bring additional fines and operational consequences.

To challenge an AGT decision, file an appeal with the relevant Tax Office Chief within 30 days of the tax notification. A hierarchical appeal to the AGT Executive Board President is available within a further 30 days. After administrative remedies are exhausted, taxpayers have 60 days to take the matter to court. The general statute of limitations for assessments is five years, extending to ten years for tax crimes or property transfer tax matters.

One piece of relief in the 2026 budget: interest on tax debts accumulated through October 31, 2025, will be forgiven if the taxpayer pays the principal and any penalties by June 2026. For businesses carrying old liabilities, the window is short.