The 2026 National Budget came dressed in language about supporting businesses, encouraging digital payments, stabilising prices, and advancing financial inclusion. But once you peel back the political promises, the reality becomes clear: most of the revenue will still come from ordinary Zimbabweans, and the digital economy the government says it wants to build will become more expensive for the very people expected to embrace it.

The most direct hit comes from the increase in Value Added Tax, which moves from 15% to 15.5%. VAT is the easiest and most efficient way for government to collect money because everyone pays it, whether formally employed or hustling in the informal sector. In Zimbabwe, however, a VAT increase never rises by the exact percentage on paper. Retailers adjust upwards, round prices, and cushion themselves for future uncertainty. Even a 0.5% increase quickly becomes something much larger on the shelf. For families already budgeting down to the last dollar, it means something drops from the basket — if there is even a basket to begin with. It is the single most impactful change in the Budget, which is ironic for a document supposedly crafted to “keep prices stable.”

Then comes the new Digital Services Withholding Tax — a move that exposes the deep contradiction at the heart of the 2026 Budget. From streaming platforms like Netflix and YouTube Premium to cloud software, online courses, mobile apps, and ride-hailing services such as Bolt and InDrive, almost every digital service paid to a foreign platform will now be taxed before the money leaves the country. In short: digital life becomes more expensive overnight. Students already relying on online learning, small businesses operating in the cloud, creatives and freelancers using international tools, or anyone simply trying to unwind with entertainment will now feel the pinch. Government talks loudly about digital inclusion and building a tech-driven economy, yet introduces a tax that makes digital participation costlier. It feels tone-deaf at best, and hostile to innovation at worst.

The IMTT “reduction” is another example of policy that sounds good but offers little practical relief. The tax on ZiG transactions drops from 2% to 1.5%, but in an economy where most people prefer USD, that change benefits almost no one. The USD IMTT remains at 2%, keeping digital transactions expensive and the cash economy attractive. The real winners are companies, as IMTT becomes a deductible expense, but consumers should not expect any price reductions. Businesses are quick to pass on costs, rarely quick to pass on savings. The inflation caused by years of IMTT being baked into prices will likely stay exactly where it is.

All these measures make the Budget feel like a set of contradictions. There are adjustments to import duties, incentives for particular sectors, gold royalty changes, and moves to liberalise gold trading. But none of these touch households as directly as VAT, digital taxes, and the unchanged USD IMTT. The government claims its focus is stability, digital transformation, and lowering the cost of doing business, yet the policies that matter most to ordinary people move in the opposite direction.

In the end, this budget looks less like a digital transformation roadmap and more like a revenue-collection mission wrapped in the language of innovation. The ordinary citizen continues to carry the weight — slowly, quietly, and one tax adjustment at a time. And the next time you buy fried chicken, just know you’re paying more VAT on it, the IMTT on the payment is already baked into the price, and yes, there’s even a special fried chicken tax hidden somewhere in the mix. The company selling it to you will pay tax on its profits too. At every turn, government takes a slice.