FG Begins Six-Week Review Of 2025 Tax Laws
The Federal Government has commenced a six-week review of Nigeria’s 2025 tax laws to address implementation gaps, clarify ambiguities and tackle unintended consequences that have emerged since the reforms took effect in January 2026.
The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, disclosed this on Thursday in Abuja while inaugurating the Technical Subcommittee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms.
Oyedele, who is also Chairman of the Presidential Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms Committee, said the review would focus on key areas including Value Added Tax thresholds, withholding tax, capital gains treatment, multiple taxation and measures to simplify tax compliance. He said the recommendations would feed into the Finance Bill 2027.
He said the implementation of the new laws had revealed areas requiring clarification and refinement, stressing that the review was not intended to reverse the fundamental principles of the 2025 reforms but to improve their effectiveness in response to emerging economic realities.
“The real test begins when the law meets the economy, as businesses interpret it, administrators implement it, investors respond to it, and citizens experience it. Implementation inevitably reveals areas requiring clarification, refinement or further reform,” Oyedele said.
The Nigeria Tax Act 2025, Nigeria Tax Administration Act 2025, Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Act 2025 and Joint Revenue Board (Establishment) Act 2025 came into full effect on January 1, 2026.
According to the minister, the government received 134 submissions from across the six geopolitical zones following its call for public input, alongside additional submissions made in hard copies.
He said stakeholders had proposed clearer and simpler rules on VAT thresholds, withholding tax and capital gains treatment, as well as stronger measures against multiple taxation and improved coordination among revenue authorities.
Other proposals included greater digitalisation and data sharing to prevent taxpayers from repeatedly submitting information already held by government agencies, stronger taxpayer rights, faster tax refunds, safeguards for small businesses and measures to improve investment and competitiveness.
Oyedele urged the subcommittee to carefully assess the economic impact of proposed changes, particularly on low-income households, workers and businesses.
“Every tax reform produces winners and losers; the question is whether a policy is fair, efficient and competitive, not whether it is popular with everyone,” he said.
He also cautioned against unnecessarily complex tax rules, saying they could increase compliance costs and create opportunities for discretionary interpretation.
“Complexity is itself a tax; it raises compliance costs and creates room for discretion and arbitrage. Where two approaches achieve the same outcome, choose the simpler one,” he said.
Beyond the preparation of the Finance Bill 2027, the subcommittee was mandated to review the Deduction of Tax at Source Regulations 2024 and prepare revised withholding tax regulations.
It will also review the Companies Income Tax (Significant Economic Presence) Order 2020 and develop an updated framework consistent with the new tax laws and international practices.
Oyedele said withholding tax should remain an advance-payment and compliance mechanism rather than become an additional cost to businesses or a tax on working capital.
He explained that tying down business funds through withholding taxes could have significant consequences for companies operating in an environment of high financing costs.
The minister gave the subcommittee six weeks to complete its assignment and submit its report.
The subcommittee is chaired by the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Finance, with the Chairman of the Tax Advisory Committee serving as co-chair.
It comprises representatives of the Federal Ministry of Justice, Nigeria Revenue Service, Joint Revenue Board, Nigeria Customs Service, Central Bank of Nigeria, Debt Management Office, Budget Office of the Federation and Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission, among others.
Representatives of business and professional bodies, including the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria, Nigerian Economic Summit Group, Nigerian Bar Association, Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria, Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria, Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture, as well as Deloitte, EY, KPMG and PwC, are also members.
The Co-chairman of the subcommittee and Chairman of the Tax Advisory Committee, Albert Folorunsho, said the panel would seek to produce technically sound and practical recommendations that respond to the realities facing taxpayers, businesses and government.
He said the committee would consult relevant stakeholders despite the six-week deadline and pursue reforms aimed at strengthening revenue mobilisation without imposing unnecessary burdens on taxpayers.