BY BONNY AMADI
The federal government has issued guidelines for the implementation of the Tax Acts 2025, setting out the transition process from repealed tax laws to Nigeria’s new tax framework, which took effect from January 1, 2026.
The guidelines, released by the federal ministry of finance, provide direction to taxpayers, tax practitioners, revenue authorities and other stakeholders on how to address various issues arising during the transition period.
This was announced on Thursday in a statement by Efe Ovuakporie, director of press relations at the federal ministry of finance.
According to the document, the Tax Acts 2025 — comprising the Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Act, the Nigeria Tax Act, the Nigeria Tax Administration Act, and the Joint Revenue Board (Establishment) Act — will apply from their respective commencement dates as stipulated in the laws.
The ministry said tax liabilities, assessments, audits, investigations, disputes and enforcement actions relating to periods before January 1, 2026, will be treated under the repealed tax laws.
“Tax returns relating to accounting periods ending before January 1, 2026, will be filed under the previous tax laws, while returns falling due from January 1, 2026, onward will be administered under the new tax framework,” the statement reads.
The document also covers the treatment of income taxes, transaction taxes, development levies, tax incentives, exemptions, record-keeping obligations and transactions that span both the old and new tax regimes.”
The ministry said existing tax incentives and exemptions granted under the repealed laws will remain valid until their expiration dates, while new applications and pending requests will be considered under the provisions of the Tax Acts 2025.
GUIDELINES ON THREE KEY PRINCIPLES’
Speaking on the release of the guidelines, Taiwo Oyedele, minister of finance and coordinating minister of the economy, said the document provides a framework for addressing transitional issues while ensuring that the new tax laws are not applied retrospectively.
Oyedele described the Tax Acts 2025 as a significant milestone in Nigeria’s tax reform programme, adding that the guidelines clarify how existing obligations, ongoing matters and future transactions will be treated under the new regime.
The guidelines are anchored on three key principles – clarity, fairness and administrative certainty,” the minister said.
According to the statement, the document is intended to promote uniform implementation and support effective tax administration across the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS), state internal revenue services, the FCT internal revenue service, local government revenue committees, tax practitioners and taxpayers nationwide.
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