FIRS goes after 85,000 millionaire tax defaulters in 2019
- The FIRS says it would collaborate with other stakeholders like the Nigeria Police Force to go after wealthy tax defaulters in 2019
- The FIRS boss, Tunde Fowler, said the agency would be going after another set of over 40,000 millionaire tax defaulters, after realizing N23bn from 45,000 others and requested assistance from the police to get them to pay up
- Fowler commended the Police Force for supporting and collaborating with the tax agency to help achieve targets
The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) has stated that it would collaborate with other stakeholders like the Nigeria Police Force to go after wealthy tax defaulters in 2019.
The disclosure was made by the agency’s executive chairman, Tunde Fowler, during a courtesy visit by the acting inspector general of police, Mohammed Adamu, to Revenue House on Thursday, February 7, Punch reports.
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Legit.ng gathers that the FIRS boss informed the IGP that based on a closer look at the books of 45,000 tax debtors who had over N100m as turnover in their accounts, the agency had realised the sum of N23bn.
Fowler said that in 2019, the FIRS would be going after another set of over 40, 000 millionaire tax defaulters and requested assistance from the police to get them to pay up.
He said: “We looked at businesses, partnerships of any activity that has banking turnover between N100m and N999m. We have done a review of this group of businesses.
“We have about seven more banks that we are still waiting for the return from and to review their information.
“So far, we have 45,361 that have TIN and are making payments. We have 40,611 that have TIN, that made tax payment and, and we have 44,504 that have no TIN and no pay.
“So, when you look at it from a glance, we have close to 75,000 in this group that are still not taxpayers and we have said the payment of tax is not only for the civil servants. it’s for all Nigerians.
“So, the millionaires and the billionaires will pay tax on behalf of what is due to the national coffers.”
The FIRS boss commended the Police Force for supporting and collaborating with the tax agency to help achieve targets. He requested for more support in 2019 to enable the FIRS recover taxes from wealthy defaulters.
He said: “Let me put on record that the Nigeria Police Force has been extremely helpful to FIRS. Without the police, I doubt that the service would have been able to achieve what we have achieved.
“2018 was a successful year. The FIRS collected a total of N5.32tn of tax revenue. This is the highest revenue collection in the history of FIRS.”
On his part, the police chief pointed out that revenue generation was critical to the survival of the nation and said the security agency would continue to support the FIRS.
He said: “We feel that the work you do is one of the most important for the survival of the country. And you need to be supported from all angles so that you can achieve what you want to achieve to the benefit of every Nigerian.
“We will continue to work with you to improve security so that people would do their businesses here, make profits and pay their taxes.
“We believe that with the new management team of the Nigeria Police Force, which is adopting community policing, we would be able to improve security.”
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Recall that Legit.ng previously reported that the Federal Inland Revenue Service said it was targeting N8.3 trillion from the collection of various taxes in 2019; up from the N5.32 trillion realised in 2018.
Tunde Fowler, the FIRS boss, stated this at the 2019 stakeholders’ retreat which took place on Monday, January 7, in Lagos.
Fowler said the target was achievable with the support of all tax payers and stakeholders.
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Source: Legit.ng
