President Buhari Creates His Own Legacy, Signs Startup Bill Into Law, SMEs to Enjoy Tax Holiday
- President Buhari has signed into law Nigeria's start-up bill, which comes with various benefits
- The new Act is a joint initiative by Nigeria’s tech startup ecosystem and the Presidency to harness the potential of Nigerian youths
- One of the benefits of the new law is that Small and Meduim Enterprises(SMEs) will enjoy tax holiday
President Muhammadu Buhari, on Wednesday, 19 October 2022 signed the Startup bill into law.
The National Assembly passed the law in July 2022, and because of the delay, there were fears President Buhari would not sign it.
An excited Minister of Communication and Digital Economy, Isa Pantami, shared a tweet immediately after it was signed.
Source: Facebook
The new law will be a big win for the present administration, and Nigeria has the country bid to harness the potential of the digital economy.
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It is also believed that it will ensure that Nigeria’s laws and regulations are clear, planned and work for the tech ecosystem.
Pantami tweeted:
“His Excellency, @MBuhari has just assented to Nigeria Start-up Bill. It has now become Nigeria Start-Up Act, 2022.
“It was an Executive Bill, initiated by both Office of the Chief of Staff and the Office of the Minister of Comms & Digital Economy. Congratulations to all.”
Tax Incentives for start-up
Excerpts from the bill show that startups will have tax and fiscal incentives.
The document reads:
“Labeled startups with at least 10 employees, 60 per cent of whom have no working experience, and within three years of graduating from school or any vocation are entitled to tax breaks from income taxes will get 5 per cent tax break on their assessable profits, access to government grants, loans and facilities.”
“Start-Ups will also access export incentives and financial assistance from the Export Development Fund, Export Expansion grants and the Export Adjustment Scheme Funds.”
Other benefits of the new start-up law
- Special certification for startups
- Startups can access a special seed fund
- Regulation- the bill provides room for regulation
- Provides for Incubation Programmes for startups to grow
- provides for what qualifies a company to register and obtain startup status
- Establishment of the National Council for Digital Innovation and Entrepreneurship to monitor and formulate policies for startups, among others
- Make Nigeria as a leading tech hub in Africa
- The new law provides various incentives for tech-based startups and also investors. It also provides support for academic research institutions geared towards startup development.
Shuttlers gets huge backing from foreign investors
Meanwhile, Legit.ng had earlier reported that foreign investors continue to invest in Nigerian entrepreneurs with innovative ideas.
Shuttlers, a bus company, is the most recent to get funding, and it will join the ranks of other Nigerian digital start-ups that have scaled up after investment.
TeamApt, one of the successful foreign investor-backed businesses, is now raising its third round of funding in order to boost its market value to over $1 billion.
Source: Legit.ng
