Tobi Aminu – Page 3 – Sunmola David & CO

This is nothing but a budget of taxation —Abaribe

The senator representing Abia-South Senatorial District of Abia State in the Senate, Enyinnaya Abaribe, has described the 2020 budget as “nothing but a budget of taxation.” The senator added that the budget is not “sustainable.” President Muhammadu Buhari presented the 2020 Appropriation Bill to the joint sitting of the National Assembly on Tuesday. He had christened it ‘Budget of Sustaining Growth and Job Creation.’ However, Abaribe, speaking at the Senate plenary on Wednesday, told the Red Chamber, “This is nothing but a budget of taxation. “I urge the Senate to look at that fact, as it is not a sustainable budget.” He hinged his reason on the ratio of debt servicing, compared to that of capital expenditure. Abaribe argued, “Debt servicing is higher than capital expenditure. We are still struggling.” A former Governor of Benue State who now represents Benue North-East Senatorial District at the Senate, Gabriel Suswam, supports Abaribe’s observation. Suswam said, “I commend Mr. President for bringing an ambitious budget; the deficit worries me, there is a correspondence borrowing increase; we need to do something in this Chamber by way of legislation to address borrowing.” However, Senator Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi (Niger North), saw things differently. To him, “This is a budget of continued change. This government is on the right trajectory. “This budget has addressed how the micro and medium small enterprises will play a key role in building the Nigerian economy.” Continuing, Abdullahi said, “This budget will continue the change and ensure our citizens see a better economy.” Source: Punch

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Tollgate: Regressive tax burden on motorists

Tax news / Tobi Aminu

The Minister of Works, Babatunde Fashola, announced plans for a return to toll plazas across the country last week, and the ministry has hurriedly tabled a proposal for its inclusion into the 2020 Appropriation Bill being considered for approval at the National Assembly this same week. Fashola had earlier made clear to the media, “There is no law that abolishes tolling in Nigeria today. We expect to return toll plazas. We have concluded their designs, what they will look like, what materials they will be built with, and what new considerations must go into them”. The minister is right on the law, in the sense that the decision to scrap toll plazas was made through an Executive Order by former President Olusegun Obasanjo in 2004. An Executive Order, once made, can be overturned by another Executive Order without further ado. That, indeed, is the law, but since when did the minister conclude that public expenditure should be rammed through the national budget for no other reason but what he (the Executive branch) can do? Especially one that involves millions of road users, with considerable revenue and tax implications? Since when did the minister conclude that widespread public consultation be waved aside, over such a major roadwork plan, impacting the taxpayers on such a huge scale? What feasibility/viability study has the minister and his team conducted? What research has taken place? How many of the stakeholders have they communicated with? What cost-benefit analysis has been done? How about the environmental impact assessment? Impact on the poor? Questions, of course, that members of the Appropriation Committee of the National Assembly should not allow the minister to duck even this late in the day. That said, the rest of the discussion here will proceed on the assumption that the minister means well. While his intention is, by all account, honourable and beyond reproach on this issue, his tactic and approach however, are highly questionable. You cannot embark upon such a major reversal of policy by fiat. He has made no reference to any public consultation or input from stakeholders whatsoever. This appears to be just his own “brilliant” idea to generate funds for the country’s severely dilapidated and indeed dangerous road networks across the country. Almost 80% of Nigeria’s road network can be considered worn out, some are indeed death traps, full of potholes, cracks and creeks along the hedges. No point going too much into details; it is something everyone is familiar with. The reason for this is not just a lack of government investment in road infrastructure, it is also that the scale of the investment needed far exceeds anything government alone can shoulder at this point in time. There is also the important element of mismanagement and misappropriation of funds earmarked for roadwork happening routinely across the federation. So, why not embark upon a scheme, Public- Private-Partnership, to lure private investors with all types of juicy tax breaks, and allow them to put their own money into a project that will benefit them and the public at large, so the thinking goes. It is a no brainer, is it not? Any serious review of the scheme must start by examining the reason(s) for the abolition of toll plazas in the first place. They were abolished in 2004 because there was no economic case for their existence. What started as an American copycat scheme soon became entangled in fraud, incompetence and was generally burdensome. Not a single person bemoaned their abolition when it was announced. Now, before we rush through a reversal of policy, has the mischief involved in the original design been cured? Why is the minister trying to evade proper public scrutiny of his plan if indeed he is so confident of its merit? Why try goading the National Assembly to rubber stamp a scheme steamrollered through a committee in a last-minute attempt? If approved, the minister would be rightly applauded for being smart, and on the ball, of course. But, it is not certain what the members of the Appropriation Committee would be credited for though. Dereliction of duty, maybe? Tolling roads is not the magic bullet that some people think it is. It may be progressive, regressive or neutral depending on the social demographics of the area being targeted, as well as the structure of the tolling regime itself. Road toll in high-income communities, such as the Lekki-Ikoyi Link Bridge, in Lagos, for instance, is progressive as it mainly affects high income motorists, who generally value time more than the increased cost of travelling. If you install toll plazas in densely populated areas, where the poor would have no choice of routes, as is currently being planned, then, the tax (or toll) becomes essentially regressive because the poor will lose out in absolute terms. The loss is only ameliorated if the revenue generated from it is ploughed back into construction and maintenance, creating job opportunities for workers. It is not clear from the minister’s point of view, how this calculation has been made. Source: Punch

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Fowler, FIRS and the challenge of reforms

Tax news / Tobi Aminu

If ever he was in doubt, it should be clear to Tunde Fowler by now that extraordinary courage is needed to push through new ideas where vested interests are deeply entrenched. As the architect of the reforms that grew the IGR (internally generated revenue) of Lagos from an average of N600 million in 1999 to well over N25 billion by 2015, perhaps this tax guru did not have to worry much about political risks and distractions back in his last station. Working for an administration that was in the opposition then, the shield mustered by the government in Alausa was certainly broad enough to protect its key enablers against the snares of the enemy. But the Federal Inland Revenue Service in Abuja is a bigger platform and so is the burden the occupant of the office has to bear. Attack is not only inevitable but often fierce also. Various schemes are floated to either slander or distract you. Especially when actions or steps undertaken by you knowingly or inadvertently hurt some folks. Well, it does not matter even if that helps public interest ultimately. Today, even the worst critics cannot but acknowledge that the innovative measures embarked upon by Fowler have helped to reposition the FIRS for better results. From the N3.3 trillion generated in 2016, the returns posted by FIRS in 2018 was a record N5.3 trillion, representing a growth of 53 percent within three years. As for 2017, the figure generated was N4 trillion. This is significant because it came at a time when the national economy was supposed to be contracting as a result of the recession that befell the country in 2014/2015, widely considered the worse the nation ever experienced in a generation following a steep crash in commodity prices in the global market. So, it would not be wrong to credit the FIRS as helping to generate revenue that enabled the country weather that recessionary storm without any oil windfall of any kind. As a matter of fact, oil price crashed to less than $30 at some point. But the FIRS’ revenue turnaround was not achieved without Fowler taking some hard decisions on assumption of office which understandably did not go down well with some folks. He did not have to reinvent the wheel though; just the application of commonsense. Of course, the elementary lesson you learn in management class is to always seek to attack cost with a view to maximizing returns. Just one example of what Fowler did to cut down the cost of operations drastically. Before he took over, the practice was for a lump sum to be made available for the heads of several dozens of FIRS stations across the country. Of course, such system was susceptible to abuse. Instead, a more transparent inventory process was enshrined such that operatives are now required to sign off a voucher to have their operational vehicles fueled at designated gas stations across the country. Such approved filling stations will, in turn, file claims directly to the FIRS for payment monthly. With time, the heavy costs incurred in the past in the name of operations were drastically cut down, thus curtailing abuse. In fact, the costs fell by more than sixty percent! Smart dudes no longer received a lump sum of money monthly over which they had discretion to spend on petrol and diesel. Of course, the bulk of that actually ended up in private pockets. The massive automation of the FIRS processes has also ensured that sharp practices of the past were curtailed if not totally eliminated. Unlike the manual situation that was overly cumbersome, taxpayers can now discharge their civic responsibility seamlessly through e-Stamping, e-Registration, e-Filing, e-Payment, e-Receipt and e-TCC. Source: The Sun

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Court bars FIRS from enforcing VAT on goods consume in hotels

Tax news / Tobi Aminu

Justice Rilwanu Aikawa of the Federal High Court in Lagos has barred the Federal Inland Revenue Services (FIRS), from enforcing VAT provisions on goods and services consumed in hotels, restaurants and event centres in Lagos State. Justice Aikawa gave the order while delivering judgment in the suit seeking to restrain the Attorney General (AG) of Lagos State from enforcing the Hotel Occupancy and Restaurant Consumption (Fiscalisation) Regulations Law (HORC), 2017, in the view that VAT Act has covered the field. In the suit, the Registered Trustees of Hotel Owners and Managers Association of Lagos (HOMA) had sued the AG in Lagos State and FIRS in the suit no. FHC/L/CS/360/2018. The HOMA had asked the court to declare that by virtue of Section 7, of the VAT Act, the second defendant (FIRS) was the only lawful and constitutional agency charged with the administration and management of consumption tax generally and particularly in Lagos state. Justice Aikawa, in delivering the judgment, dismissed the suit and held that it was lacking in merit, adding that the plaintiff was obliged to comply with the HORC Law 2009 and the HORC Regulations 2017. The court also raised two issues by herself; whether the Federal High Court had the jurisdiction to pronounce on the constitutionality of VAT. The court resolved that it has jurisdiction. Aikawa also held that the issue of the powers of the minister to amend the schedule to the Taxes and Levies (Approved List for Collection) Act was not in dispute before the court and so no pronouncement could be made on it. The court in dismissing the originating summons, as lacking merit and resolving the questions and reliefs sought in favour of the first defendant, held: “That consumption tax is not stated in either the exclusive and concurrent legislative list, in the Constitution of Nigeria, therefore, the absence on the concurrent and exclusive lists, puts consumption tax on the residual list, which is within the legislative competence and powers of state governments. “That VAT Act can’t cover the field over what the federal government has no power to legislate upon, under the constitution, therefore the determinant factor in the issue of covering the field, is whether there is the power to make the Law. “The provisions of VAT Act relating to consumption tax are inconsistent with the Nigerian constitution. “The Minister of Finance has corrected the anomaly, by including consumption tax in the list of taxes collectible by the state government, therefore, the responsibility for collecting consumption tax lies on the state government. “The provisions of Sections 1, 2, 4, 5 & 12 of VAT Act are in breech of the 1999 constitution and the plaintiffs are obliged to comply with the HORC Law 2009 and the HORC Regulations 2017. “FIRS are barred from enforcing VAT provisions as it relates to a consumption tax on goods and services consumed in Hotels, Restaurants and Event Centres in Lagos State, ” the judgment read. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Registered Trustees of HOMA had filed an originating summons asking the court to determine the following: “Whether the VAT Act regulating the imposition of tax on consumption of goods and services has not covered the field on taxation of goods and services consumed in hotels, event centres, and restaurants in Lagos State. “Whether by virtue of Section 7 of the VAT Act, the second defendant (FIRS) is not the only lawful and constitutional agency charged with the administration and management of consumption tax generally and particularly in Lagos State. “Whether the provisions of the Hotel Occupancy and Restaurant Consumption (Fiscalization) Regulations 2017 are of no effect, in view of the fact that VAT Act has covered the field”. Consequently, the first defendant, (AG Lagos State), filed a counter-claim urging the court to determine; “Whether the provisions of Sections 1, 2, 4, 5 & 12 of VAT Act by which the FIRS imposes tax on customers for goods and services consumed in hotels, restaurants and event centres in Lagos State is inconsistent with the provisions of Sections 4(2), 4(a) & (b) and 4 (7) (a) & (b) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended) and therefore unconstitutional and invalid? “Whether by the provisions of Section 4 (7) of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria, the provisions of the Taxes and Levies (Approved List for Collection) Act Cap T2 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria as amended by the Schedule to the Taxes and Levies order 2015) and the provisions of HORC Law 2009. “Whether the counter-claimant is the only constitutional and lawful body empowered to assess, impose and collect taxes from customers of the Plaintiff for goods and services consumed in hotels, restaurants and event centres in Lagos State. Source: Guardian

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Communication Tax could overburden consumers – Experts

Tax news / Tobi Aminu

Financial analysts have described the proposed Communication Service Tax Bill as a misadventure and would only serve to overburden consumers who already bear 5.0% Value Added Tax (VAT) on telecommunications services. The 2016 version which failed, was meant to help boost government revenues from non-oil taxes in the wake of the collapse in oil prices between 2014 and 2016. The 2019 version of the bill passed the first reading in the Senate last week and it proposes a 9.0% Communication Service Tax (CST) to replace the planned increase in VAT from 5.0% to 7.5% by the FG. The CST when passed into law will be levied on the consumers of voice calls, MMS, SMS, data usage and Pay per View TV services provided by mobile telecommunication and internet service providers. Failure of telecommunication companies to file returns attracts N50,000 and N10,000 fines daily until compliance while non-remittance of the tax will attract a monthly interest on the unpaid tax at 150.0% of lending rates by commercial banks. However, analysts at Afrinvest posited that the CST would overburden consumers who already bear 5.0% Value Added Tax (VAT) on telecommunications services. They said for the telecommunications sector, the proposed CST worsens the issue of tax multiplicity. In addition to existing taxes, companies would bear increased costs of compliance and lower patronage as consumers react negatively to new taxes. They further argued that with the sector contributing 1.2% to the real GDP growth of 1.9% in Q2:2019, there is the prospect for even slower economic growth. “We do not expect the CST to generate as much as the proposed VAT of 7.5% which we conservatively estimate to bring in additional N545.1 billion as VAT revenue. Revenues from the CST of 9.0% would clearly fall short of the FG’s expected increase in VAT, even without considering the changes to consumer demand and growth in the sector. “We believe the FG’s approach towards taxes could affect economic growth and dampen the investment climate, with negative implications for tax collections,” Afrinvest noted. Source: Daily trust

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NECA rejects additional taxes to fund rebuilding of tollgates

TAX SERVICES / Tobi Aminu

The Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA) has rejected Federal Government’s proposed imposition of fresh taxes or levies on Nigerians to fund the reconstruction of tollgates on federal highways across the country. It argued that for the tolling policy to see the light of the day, no additional burden, in form of any tax or levy should be placed on businesses and individuals to fund the toll system.Director General of NECA, Timothy Olawale told The Guardian that individuals and businesses have already been over burdened with several taxes and even proposed additional taxes such as the mobile tax and increased Value Added Tax (VAT). He said adding a fresh levy to the existing ones would reduce the purchasing power of Nigerians with dire consequences for businesses and households. Olawale, who applauded the initiative, however, noted that the proposed plan should not commence under the present state of dilapidated roads across the country. He advised that the Federal Government through the Ministry of Works and Housing to engage relevant professional and Business Membership Organisations (BMOs) to initiate policies that would guide the operations for effective infrastructure development of the country.He advocated that private sector operators should be attracted through public-private partnerships (PPPs) in the construction, maintenance and management of the toll systems, as it obtains in other climes. The NECA boss also canvassed resuscitation of the nation’s rail system, maintaining that rail transportation remained the cheapest and most efficient globally.He added that bringing the rail system to limelight would reduce the high cost of maintenance as it carries over 90 per cent of domestic freight and passengers. “We are conscious of the numerous benefits that the economy could derive from tolling. However, we are concerned also about the past failures that characterised management of the toll system across the country, occasioned by huge revenue leakages and lack of maintenance of the roads. “We will like to reiterate that not all roads are viable for proposition for tolling, especially subsidiary roads and those with low traffic,” he said. Source: Guardian

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Nigeria sustains ‘hunt without barriers’ in new tax drive

TAX SERVICES / Tobi Aminu

The Federal Government’s aggressive pursuit of increased non-oil revenue to pare huge budget deficit, which has remained a yearly routine over the years, gained further traction last week, with plans by the lawmakers to enact Communication Service Tax (CST). But the move, like others, is still testing the controversial waters over its morality, workability and economic viability. Following the most recently tax initiatives, which controversies are yet to settle, include the planned online transactions tax for 2020 and 44 per cent rise in Value Added Tax (VAT). The CST, according to the nation’s lawmakers, is an alternative to VAT.Already, “fast fingers” among the nation’s financial analysts are seeing a shortfall with CST’s revenue capacity and rising cost for telecommunications’ users, while VAT holds sway over potential inflationary pressure, among others. In both ways, they signify additional burden for the citizenry and represent government’s great “hunt without barriers.” The CST Bill is back from the dead but now repurposed. The 2016 version was meant to help boost government revenues from non-oil taxes in the wake of the collapse in oil prices between 2014 and 2016.In the 2019 version of the bill, which passed the first reading in the Senate this week and it proposes a nine per cent Communication Service Tax (CST) to replace the planned increase in VAT from five per cent to 7.5 per cent by the FG.The CST, when passed into law, will be levied on the consumers of voice calls, Multi-media Messaging Service (MMS), Short Message Service (SMS) data usage and Pay per View TV services provided by mobile telecommunication and Internet service providers. While the companies must provide the government access to network nodes, non-compliant service providers could suffer penalties, including five per cent of gross yearly revenue from the last audited financial statements or a revocation of their licence.Failure to file returns by due date will attract N50,000 as well as 10,000 per day until compliance while non-remittance of the tax by the due date will attract a monthly interest on the unpaid tax at 150 per cent of the average of prevailing lending rates by commercial banks. The Par trillioner/Head of Tax and Corporate Advisory Services at PwC Nigeria, Taiwo Oyedele, while reacting to recent developments in Nigeria tax system, said the positive side for government is additional revenue, which on the other side, will leave the citizens with more difficulties, unless palliative are quickly scripted. Noting that government must not only go about taxing Nigerians, he recalled that the fundamental principle of taxation is that people should pay according to their abilities, which presently is questionable, as regards how many people that can pay.“To limit the impact of an increase government should implement counter measures and palliatives to protect businesses and the poor. Ensure transparent reporting and efficient utilisation of the revenue for public services and infrastructure to act as palliatives and catalyst for growth. “Government should lead by example,” he said, ensuring that all its Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) fully comply.For analysts at Arinvest Securities Limited, the CST would overburden consumers who already bear five per cent Value Added Tax (VAT) on telecommunications services.“As Nigeria plans to boost digital connectivity and derive the attendant benefits, this could slow progress as consumers readjust spending patterns given the level of poverty in the country. For the telecommunications sector, the proposed CST worsens the issue of tax multiplicity. “In addition to existing taxes, companies would bear increased costs of compliance and lower patronage as consumers react negatively to new taxes. With the sector contributing 1.2 per cent to the real GDP growth of 1.9 per cent in Q2:2019, there is the prospect for even slower economic growth. “Similarly, considering that the penetration of telecommunications services is lagging in rural areas, the planned tax would slow progress towards expanding national coverage. This could have negative implications for financial inclusion which is expected to be driven by mobile money services,” the Managing Director of company, Ayodeji Ebo, said in the Weekly Update made available to The Guardian at the weekend. The analysts noted that the CST may not generate as much as the proposed VAT of 7.5 per cent, which we conservatively estimate to bring in additional N545.1 billion as additional revenue. They said that an analysis of data on the sectoral distribution of VAT collections, showed that VAT from professional services, which includes collections from the telecommunications sector, was N86.3 billion in 2018. Revenues from the CST of nine per cent would clearly fall short of the Federal Government’s expected increase in VAT, even without considering the changes to consumer demand and growth in the sector. “Our analysis of the 2019 budget performance in half year shows that the FG’s deficit continues to rise given the slow increase in revenue. Between January and June 2019, the FG incurred a deficit of N1.3 trillion, which is 63.5 per cent of its proposed budget deficit (N2.1 trillion). Source: Guardian

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MTN, Glo, Airtel, 9mobile subscribers, others to pay extra N261bn

Tax news / Tobi Aminu

Telecom subscribers in the country are likely to pay an additional N261.18bn on voice calls, short message service and data in one year if the Senate passes the proposed Communications Service Bill into law. The bill, sponsored by Senator Ali Ndume from Borno South, aims to charge nine per cent on communication services and pay-per-view TV services. Ndume noted that the bill, which had passed the first reading at the upper chamber of the National Assembly, would impose levies on electronic communication services like voice calls, SMS, data usage – both from telecommunication services providers and Internet service providers and pay-per-view TV services. Meanwhile, network operators under the aegis of the Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria pointed out that the proposed nine per cent tax would make communication expensive and in turn make life difficult for the average Nigerians. The Chairman of ALTON, Gbenga Adebayo, said communication was presently one of the most affordable basic needs of Nigerians but cautioned that the proposed increase was offensive and would make it inaccessible to many. In fact, the bill specifically stipulated that the subscribers would be liable for the payment of the tax. Section 2 of the bill reads, “The tax shall be paid together with the Electronic Communication Service charge payable to the service provider by the consumer of the service. “The tax is due and payable on any supply of Electronic Communication Service within the time period specified under sub-clause (5) of whether or not the person making the supply is permitted or authorised to provide Electronic Communication Services.” The latest monthly subscribers’ data obtained from the Nigerian Communications Commission indicated that the number of active subscribers to mobile services in Nigeria through the four network operators stood at 176.62 million as of August 2019. MTN leads the industry with 65.71 million active subscribers, followed by Airtel with 47.92 million, Globacom has 47.27 million, 9mobile has 15.6 million and Visafone spectrum owned by MTN has 119,386 customers. According to the data obtained from the NCC, in the year ended December 2018, the total outgoing mobile-to-mobile minutes of calls from MTN, Globacom, Airtel, 9mobile, Smile and Ntel was 114.20 billion minutes., however, showed that at an average of N24 per minute, offered by the network operators, subscribers in the country spent N2.74tn on calls within one year. But, with an additional nine per cent tax on voice calls, if the bill is passed into law, subscribers may have to spend about N246.67bn more on voice calls only, because according to analysts, operators would eventually pass the increase to the final consumers. The analysis showed that MTN subscribers may have to pay N29.43 as against N27/min; 9mobile subscribers may have to pay N32.7/min as against N30/min; Airtel users may have to pay N32.7 as against N30/min, and Glo subscribers may have to pay N7.2/ min as against N6.6/min. The 2018 industry data from the NCC showed that the total volume of SMS sent in the year ended December 2018 was 9,565,167,407, which implied that subscribers paid N38.26bn for SMS in the 12 months, at N4 per SMS. With an additional nine per cent tax on SMS, subscribers will spend about N3.44bn more on messages as the unit cost of SMS could rise to N4.36 to enable network operators to remit the nine per cent tax to the government. Also, NCC statistics showed the total number of international SMS sent through the four mobile network operators, including Smile and Ntel, in the previous year was 51,534,609. At N15/international SMS, subscribers, therefore, spent N773.02m. Thus, if the nine per cent tax is imposed on international SMS, subscribers are likely to pay N69.57m more as the tariff could rise to N16.35 per international SMS. Industry data also indicated that 188,012,210 outgoing mobile roaming minutes were recorded in the previous year, at an average of N288 per minute, which was responsible for the N54.15bn subscribers spent on roaming the previous year. With a nine per cent tax, the international call tariff may rise to an average of N314 per minute to make allowance for the nine per cent tax the network operators would remit to the government. Thus, subscribers may likely spend about N4.87bn more on international calls. Source: Punch

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300,000 people pay taxes in Anambra —Commissioner

Tax news / Tobi Aminu

The Anambra State Government has said that not more than 300,000 residents of the state pay taxes out of a population of 4.5 million. Mr Mark Okoye, the State Commissioner for Economic Planning and Budget, made the disclosure at a news conference tagged: “2020 Budget Breakdown” on Thursday in Awka. The News Agency of Nigeria reports that Governor Willie Obiano had on September 24 presented the 2020 budget proposal of N137.1 billion to the state House of Assembly for approval. Obiano had tagged the budget “Accelerating Infrastructure Development and Youths Entrepreneurship.” The governor said that the budget would promote agriculture, social infrastructure development and as well as enhance jobs creation. According to him, N78.3 billion will be spent on capital expenditure, translating to 57 per cent of the budget, while N58.69 billion or 43 per cent is for recurrent expenditure. Presenting the budget breakdown, Okoye said that the state government had put automated reforms in place to capture more residents into the tax net. “From an Internally Generated Revenue standpoint, we are projecting N30 billion for 2020 which will be N2.5 billion every month. “As we speak today, we have about 300, 000 taxpayers registered in the state, and we also have about 10,000 businesses registered in Anambra. “I can tell you that of all these numbers, less than 10 per cent are paying taxes and most of them are also paying understated taxes. “If we can increase that figure to 20 per cent, that will take our current IGR rate from N 1.7 billion to N3.4 billion, that doubles it. “This is why government instituted comprehensive reforms in the state to capture many residents and businesses. “We have the Anambra State Social Service Identity number and other automation drives across the state to get data, and also capture many residents into the tax net,’’ he said. Okoye said that government needed the taxpayers’ money to drive development in the state. Source: Punch

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Kwara model in revenue collection–FIRS chairman

Tax news / Tobi Aminu

Chairman, Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Mr Babatunde Fowler, has described the Kwara Internal Revenue Service (KWIRS), as a model revenue agency in the North Central region. Fowler gave this pass mark, yesterday, in Ilorin at the flag-off of the National Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) and Consolidated National Taxpayers’ Database. He said the choice of Ilorin for the flag-off of the North Central Region was in recognition of the path-finding role the state had played in ensuring sustainable internally generated revenue profile for Kwara and the region. “Over the years, KWIRS has designed and executed far reaching IGR reforms that have translated to a model revenue agency in the region,” said Fowler. “Following the Law granting it autonomy in June 2015, it has developed in leaps and bounds constantly seeking to achieve excellence in tax administration. It has achieved a 221 per cent increase in its collection from N7.1 billion in 2015 at the time of attaining its autonomous status to N23 billion in 2018, he said. Source: The Sun

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