African Tax Observatory · Country brief · LesothoData pulled 14 October 2026 · taxintellilyticsstories.com/africa/countries/LSO

Centre 29°35′S 28°14′E

Gazetteer · Southern Africa · Lower middle income

Lesotho

Collected 21.3% of GDP in tax in 2024, 6 of 38 reporting members.

21.3%

Tax, % of GDP, 2024

+5.8

Points since 2011

across a break: see the note

1.34

Tax buoyancy

over 15 years, across a break

$759

Tax per person

PPP dollars

Plate I·Over time

Fifteen years, against the continent

Over time

Lesotho against the continent

Measure

LesothoSouthern Africa medianATAF median and middle half

The shaded band is the middle half of ATAF members each year (25th to 75th percentile); the dashed line is the median of Southern Africa. The members reporting change from year to year, so the band can move because the set of countries changed; the CSV gives the count for each year.

Show the numbers as a table

Year	Lesotho	Southern Africa median	ATAF median	ATAF 25th percentile	ATAF 75th percentile	Members reporting
2010		15.60	14.34	10.67	16.43	26
2011	15.55	15.19	14.84	10.99	16.62	33
2012	16.50	16.25	15.07	11.45	16.75	33
2013	15.43	15.43	13.83	11.23	16.89	32
2014	15.03	15.31	14.26	11.87	17.13	32
2015	15.87	15.87	15.08	12.33	18.55	33
2016	16.35	14.57	14.38	12.40	17.43	33
2017	15.89	15.89	14.75	11.50	16.95	35
2018	15.72	16.83	14.18	10.86	16.10	36
2019	18.41	17.80	13.57	11.51	17.23	38
2020	23.28	16.20	13.27	10.85	16.07	38
2021	15.74	15.74	12.72	10.44	16.06	40
2022	20.76	18.21	14.18	11.34	18.16	39
2023	20.06	20.06	14.43	11.30	18.82	37
2024	21.30	18.92	14.30	12.17	18.05	38
2025	27.25	19.51	13.74	12.18	20.53	34

Plate II·Peers, 2024

Each tax beside the medians

Against its peers, 2024

Each tax as a share of GDP, beside the medians

The line joins Lesotho (orange) to the ATAF median (grey); the blue tick is the Southern Africa median. All three are for 2024.

Show the numbers as a table

Measure	Lesotho	Southern Africa median	ATAF median
Tax-to-GDP	21.30	18.92	14.30
Domestic taxes	18.24	13.03	9.01
Customs taxes	3.06	4.70	4.87
VAT	9.45	7.29	5.20
PIT	7.26	4.12	2.04
CIT	2.18	3.28	2.72

Plate III·Tax heads

How Lesotho's tax is made up

Tax heads

What each tax brings in, as a share of GDP

Domestic VATPersonal income taxCorporate income taxWithholding taxOther domestic taxesVAT on importsImport dutyExcise on importsOther customs taxes

Each bar stacks the tax heads ATAF publishes for that year. Where the heads do not add up to total tax revenue, the gap is drawn in light grey and labelled, never spread across the heads. A head missing from a year was not reported for that year.

Show the numbers as a table

Year	Tax head	Revenue (PPP $)	% of GDP
2011	Domestic VAT	197929078	3.99
2011	Personal income tax	289075953	5.83
2011	Corporate income tax	115631742	2.33
2011	Withholding tax	70583814	1.42
2011	Other domestic taxes	5375271	0.11
2011	VAT on imports	116029448	2.34
2011	Import duty	7920476	0.16
2012	Domestic VAT	199818001	3.97
2012	Personal income tax	335920627	6.68
2012	Corporate income tax	127081731	2.53
2012	Withholding tax	79281650	1.58
2012	Other domestic taxes	6766355	0.13
2012	VAT on imports	113340004	2.25
2012	Import duty	12788196	0.25
2013	Domestic VAT	243935678	4.39
2013	Personal income tax	329090507	5.93
2013	Corporate income tax	103144298	1.86
2013	Withholding tax	95991717	1.73
2013	Other domestic taxes	7824037	0.14
2013	VAT on imports	129475485	2.33
2013	Import duty	16745944	0.30
2014	Domestic VAT	255287126	4.16
2014	Personal income tax	355741329	5.80
2014	Corporate income tax	128781266	2.10
2014	Withholding tax	92432931	1.51
2014	Other domestic taxes	4797986	0.08
2014	VAT on imports	119407450	1.95
2014	Import duty	15515575	0.25
2015	Domestic VAT	297100485	4.49
2015	Personal income tax	347534530	5.25
2015	Corporate income tax	184587756	2.79
2015	Withholding tax	106773227	1.61
2015	Other domestic taxes	6259261	0.09
2015	VAT on imports	148391545	2.24
2015	Import duty	19867285	0.30
2016	Domestic VAT	285363395	4.22
2016	Personal income tax	346500221	5.12
2016	Corporate income tax	224426129	3.32
2016	Withholding tax	149334061	2.21
2016	Other domestic taxes	8315706	0.12
2016	VAT on imports	155655455	2.30
2016	Import duty	29031872	0.43
2017	Domestic VAT	264409513	4.22
2017	Personal income tax	356895306	5.69
2017	Corporate income tax	178504266	2.85
2017	Withholding tax	132706288	2.12
2017	Other domestic taxes	10156496	0.16
2017	VAT on imports	144970491	2.31
2017	Import duty	20	0.00
2018	Domestic VAT	269489179	4.75
2018	Personal income tax	329127586	5.80
2018	Corporate income tax	130485005	2.30
2018	Withholding tax	128927206	2.27
2018	Other domestic taxes	6723332	0.12
2018	VAT on imports	132383624	2.33
2019	Domestic VAT	323249114	5.84
2019	Personal income tax	357544829	6.46
2019	Corporate income tax	154337606	2.79
2019	Withholding tax	145391249	2.63
2019	Other domestic taxes	5977420	0.11
2019	VAT on imports	142292322	2.57
2020	Domestic VAT	445972109	8.30
2020	Personal income tax	367687424	6.84
2020	Corporate income tax	148145221	2.76
2020	Withholding tax	107496657	2.00
2020	Other domestic taxes	11867979	0.22
2020	VAT on imports	169628126	3.16
2021	Domestic VAT	412896482	6.68
2021	Personal income tax	375302384	6.07
2021	Corporate income tax	142199952	2.30
2021	Withholding tax	11751154	0.19
2021	Other domestic taxes	9436967	0.15
2021	VAT on imports	139585130	2.26
2022	Domestic VAT	438499268	8.90
2022	Personal income tax	341033094	6.92
2022	Corporate income tax	125516918	2.55
2022	Withholding tax	68755783	1.40
2022	Other domestic taxes	10467534	0.21
2022	VAT on imports	143349751	2.91
2022	Import duty	135771	0.00
2023	Domestic VAT	710156800	9.41
2023	Personal income tax	484297092	6.41
2023	Corporate income tax	138923716	1.84
2023	Withholding tax	103135416	1.37
2023	Other domestic taxes	17119162	0.23
2023	VAT on imports	207140472	2.74
2024	Domestic VAT	591687934	7.11
2024	Personal income tax	604357846	7.26
2024	Corporate income tax	181569606	2.18
2024	Withholding tax	58479682	0.70
2024	Other domestic taxes	160744712	1.93
2024	VAT on imports	194817362	2.34
2024	Excise on imports	59896877	0.72
2025	Domestic VAT	853891216	12.01
2025	Personal income tax	361383231	5.08
2025	Corporate income tax	183385521	2.58
2025	Withholding tax	23792688	0.33
2025	Other domestic taxes	145114324	2.04
2025	VAT on imports	482623947	6.79
2025	Other customs taxes	6004717	0.08

The mix in 2024

Every shilling, franc or rand of tax, by head

Rectangle areas are proportional to revenue in 2024 (US dollars at purchasing-power parity). Total tax revenue: $1.8bn.

Show the numbers as a table

Tax head	Revenue (PPP $)	Share of tax revenue
Domestic VAT	591687934	0.33
Personal income tax	604357846	0.34
Corporate income tax	181569606	0.10
Withholding tax	58479682	0.03
Other domestic taxes	160744712	0.09
VAT on imports	194817362	0.11
Excise on imports	59896877	0.03

Every published number

Lesotho in the ATAF Databank

All 23 freely available indicators, exactly as ATAF publishes them. A blank cell means ATAF has no figure for that year; nothing is filled in.

Lesotho: ATAF Databank indicators by year
Indicator	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024	2025
Nominal GDP (PPP)	$4.6bn	$5.0bn	$5.0bn	$5.6bn	$6.1bn	$6.6bn	$6.8bn	$6.3bn	$5.7bn	$5.5bn	$5.4bn	$6.2bn	$4.9bn	$7.5bn	$8.3bn	$7.1bn
Real GDP	19,406.7m	20,746.0m	21,990.4m	22,395.7m	23,094.8m	23,474.8m	24,312.1m	24,347.5m	23,554.2m	23,179.4m	20,974.9m	19,914.4m	20,516.8m	32,923.9m	21,307.7m	21,679.3m
Final Consumption (PPP)											$6.6bn	$6.6bn	$6.1bn	$5.0bn	$9.5bn
Total Tax Revenues (PPP)		$771.2m	$829.5m	$856.6m	$922.2m	$1.1bn	$1.1bn	$996.6m	$892.0m	$1.0bn	$1.3bn	$972.3m	$1.0bn	$1.5bn	$1.8bn	$1.9bn
Total Number Of Registered Taxpayers														81k
Non-Tax-Revenues (PPP)	$95.7bn	$327.3m	$253.4m	$199.9m	$220.9m	$266.4m	$270.6m						$278.1m	$795.3m		$585.9m
Domestic Tax Revenues (PPP)		$647.2m	$703.4m	$710.4m	$787.3m	$882.2m	$921.4m	$851.7m	$759.6m	$876.3m	$1.1bn	$832.7m	$879.1m	$1.3bn	$1.5bn	$1.4bn
Customs Tax Revenues (PPP)		$123.9m	$126.1m	$146.2m	$134.9m	$168.3m	$184.7m	$145.0m	$132.4m	$142.3m	$169.6m	$139.6m	$143.5m	$207.1m	$254.7m	$488.6m
Revenue From Agriculture, Forest & Fishing (PPP)		$896.9k	$907.8k	$1.5m	$3.3m	$3.5m	$2.5m	$2.7m			$1.9m	$2.0m	$2.0m	$232.9k	$4.5m	$25.0m
Revenue From Mining & Quarrying (PPP)					$55.3m	$112.5m	$115.0m	$92.3m			$11.8m	$84.3m	$89.8m	$6.4m	$114.3m	$24.7m
Revenue From Secondary Sector (PPP)		$47.0m	$48.1m	$56.0m	$187.0m	$168.8m	$223.6m	$183.5m			$175.3m	$147.3m	$158.5m	$18.2m	$282.0m	$20.0m
Revenue From Tertiary Sector (PPP)		$83.2m	$90.1m	$110.7m	$716.5m	$721.4m	$885.7m	$792.4m			$765.4m	$656.2m	$644.5m	$66.2m	$1.1bn	$875.0m
Domestic VAT Revenues (PPP)		$197.9m	$199.8m	$243.9m	$255.3m	$297.1m	$285.4m	$264.4m	$269.5m	$323.2m	$446.0m	$412.9m	$438.5m	$710.2m	$591.7m	$853.9m
VAT Refunded (PPP)		$58.3m	$66.5m	$93.2m	$76.0m	$82.9m	$112.9m	$114.2m	$105.2m	$110.2m		$118.9m	$128.0m	$146.4m	$138.3m	$149.5m
PIT Revenues (PPP)		$289.1m	$335.9m	$329.1m	$355.7m	$347.5m	$346.5m	$356.9m	$329.1m	$357.5m	$367.7m	$375.3m	$341.0m	$484.3m	$604.4m	$361.4m
CIT Revenues (PPP)		$115.6m	$127.1m	$103.1m	$128.8m	$184.6m	$224.4m	$178.5m	$130.5m	$154.3m	$148.1m	$142.2m	$125.5m	$138.9m	$181.6m	$183.4m
Withholding Tax Revenues (PPP)		$70.6m	$79.3m	$96.0m	$92.4m	$106.8m	$149.3m	$132.7m	$128.9m	$145.4m	$107.5m	$11.8m	$68.8m	$103.1m	$58.5m	$23.8m
Presumptive Tax Revenues (PPP)
Other Domestic Tax Revenues (PPP)		$5.4m	$6.8m	$7.8m	$4.8m	$6.3m	$8.3m	$10.2m	$6.7m	$6.0m	$11.9m	$9.4m	$10.5m	$17.1m	$160.7m	$145.1m
VAT On Import Revenues (PPP)		$116.0m	$113.3m	$129.5m	$119.4m	$148.4m	$155.7m	$145.0m	$132.4m	$142.3m	$169.6m	$139.6m	$143.3m	$207.1m	$194.8m	$482.6m
Import Duty Revenues (PPP)		$7.9m	$12.8m	$16.7m	$15.5m	$19.9m	$29.0m	$20					$135.8k
Excises on Imports Revenues (PPP)															$59.9m
Other Customs Tax Revenues (PPP)																$6.0m

Values are rounded for display; the CSV has them exactly as published. Revenue and GDP are US dollars at purchasing-power parity.

Data-quality checks

What the automatic checks found

These are rule-based checks, run on every pull. A flag says the numbers deserve a second look, not that they are wrong; the methods page explains each rule.

Year	Check	Detail
2011	Disagrees with the World Bank	ATAF gives 15.5% of GDP; the World Bank's central-government series gives 30.2%.
2012	Disagrees with the World Bank	ATAF gives 16.5% of GDP; the World Bank's central-government series gives 38.1%.
2013	Disagrees with the World Bank	ATAF gives 15.4% of GDP; the World Bank's central-government series gives 35.9%.
2014	Disagrees with the World Bank	ATAF gives 15.0% of GDP; the World Bank's central-government series gives 36.3%.
2015	Disagrees with the World Bank	ATAF gives 15.9% of GDP; the World Bank's central-government series gives 33.8%.
2016	Disagrees with the World Bank	ATAF gives 16.3% of GDP; the World Bank's central-government series gives 29.3%.
2017	Disagrees with the World Bank	ATAF gives 15.9% of GDP; the World Bank's central-government series gives 33.0%.
2018	Disagrees with the World Bank	ATAF gives 15.7% of GDP; the World Bank's central-government series gives 31.8%.
2019	Disagrees with the World Bank	ATAF gives 18.4% of GDP; the World Bank's central-government series gives 32.5%.
2020	Disagrees with the World Bank	ATAF gives 23.3% of GDP; the World Bank's central-government series gives 36.0%.
2021	Disagrees with the World Bank	ATAF gives 15.7% of GDP; the World Bank's central-government series gives 31.9%.
2022	Disagrees with the World Bank	ATAF gives 20.8% of GDP; the World Bank's central-government series gives 30.4%.
2023	Disagrees with the World Bank	ATAF gives 20.1% of GDP; the World Bank's central-government series gives 40.0%.
2024	Disagrees with the World Bank	ATAF gives 21.3% of GDP; the World Bank's central-government series gives 35.4%.

Source: ATAF Databank, the African Tax Administration Forum; World Bank World Development Indicators. Tax and GDP are in US dollars at purchasing-power parity, so their ratio equals the ratio in local currency. Cite as: Kaijamahe, W. H. (2026). Lesotho. In African Tax Observatory (Edition 1, October 2026) [Data set and atlas]. TaxIntellilytics Stories. https://www.taxintellilyticsstories.com/africa/countries/LSO Every figure and its method: taxintellilyticsstories.com/africa/methods

Cite this sheet

Lesotho, in Edition 1

Kaijamahe, W. H. (2026). Lesotho. In African Tax Observatory (Edition 1, October 2026) [Data set and atlas]. TaxIntellilytics Stories. https://www.taxintellilyticsstories.com/africa/countries/LSO

Southern Africa

Neighbouring profiles

Angola Botswana Eswatini Malawi Mozambique Namibia South Africa Zambia Zimbabwe Compare Lesotho with its neighbours →