FG Proposes New Pattern of Tax Payment, Speaks on Refunding Overcharges
- The federal government has proposed a tax payment option that enables individuals to pay their taxes in installments
- The Nigeria Tax Bill 2024, which was recently submitted to the National Assembly for approval, contained this
- If approved, this means that everyone will have the option to pay their taxes before the filing deadline, either in full at once or in installments
Legit.ng journalist Zainab Iwayemi has over 3-year-experience covering the Economy, Technology, and Capital Market.
A tax payment option that allows people to pay their taxes in installments has been proposed by the federal government.
Source: UGC
This was included in the Nigeria Tax Bill 2024, which was just sent to the National Assembly for approval.
This implies that taxpayers will choose to pay their taxes in full at once or in installments, settling before the filing deadline.
Tax refund
Additionally, the administration suggested that the Accountant-General of the Federation open a dedicated account just for tax refunds.
The Punch reported that a wide range of new tax measures were instituted by the administration last week with the goal of greatly increasing revenue collection.
The reform states that in order to improve the efficiency of collecting direct taxes and other levies imposed by the government, the Nigerian Customs Service, Nigerian Ports Authority, and 60 other revenue collection agencies will not be allowed to participate in revenue collection activities.
Instead, the Nigeria Revenue Service will be established. Additionally, it suggested establishing an ombudsman and tax tribunal.
An examination of the 160-page document revealed that the government did, however, allude to the idea of paying taxes in installments as part of its attempts to boost collection.
Section 48 of the draft bill read:
“Subject to section 11 of this Act and without prejudice to any other provision of this Act, every person shall make payment of tax due on or before the due date of filing in one lump sum or instalments, provided that the final instalment shall be paid on or before the due date of filing.”
According to the statement, the amount must be paid in equal monthly installments, along with a final installment, and must equal one-twelfth of the total amount due, or less than a year in the case of an accounting period.
Over charges to be refunded
The bill clarified that after an audit by the appropriate tax body, taxpayers would get a refund for any overpayment or excess tax owed.
“The relevant tax authority may make such rules and conditions necessary to facilitate the refund mentioned in subsection one of this section. Any tax refund due shall be made within 90 days of the decision of the relevant tax authority made pursuant to subsection two of this section, with the option of a set-off against any tax liability of the taxpayer.
“For the purpose of tax refund, the Accountant-General of the Federation or of a State shall open a dedicated account for each tax type into which shall be paid money for settling tax refunds. The relevant tax authority shall provide the Accountant-General of the Federation or of a State an estimate of the amount to be set aside for tax refunds.
Bill Gates speaks on Nigeria’s tax system
Legit.ng reported that Bill Gates, co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, has raised concerns over Nigeria's low tax collection rates, emphasising the challenges this poses to financing critical sectors such as health and education.
Bill Gates addressed the issue of Nigeria's low tax collection rates during Nutrivision 2024 in Abuja, a Pan-African youth dialogue on nutrition.
He emphasized the need for Nigeria to increase government funding over time, pointing out that current tax collection is insufficient.
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Source: Legit.ng
