The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) confirmed it collected “a record” N3.303 trillion in 2016.

Nigeria’s main tax collection agency,The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) has confirmed that it collected “a record” N3.303 trillion in 2016. This was confirmed by the Chairman of the Revenue Service Babatunde Fowler in Lagos. Thought the report, according to NAN debunks earlier reports of the revenue made by the FIRS, it wasn’t clear if this included Oil related taxes.

According to the News Agency of Nigeria, earlier reports had said the agency only raked in between  N1.2 trillion and N2trillion for the year, as against N2.92trillion made in 2015.

The new figure reported by Fowler shows that the agency beat 2015 figure, but failed to meet the N5 trillion target set by the Federal Government for the 2016 budget.

Mr Fowler disclosed the new figure,  at a breakfast meeting of PEDABO, a tax, audit and advisory firm in Lagos. The event took place at the Civic Centre on Victoria Island in Lagos.

Here are more details of his disclosure;

• The N3 trillion plus collected is about 6 per cent of GDP.
• At individual level, only 13.4 million people of tax paying status have been captured by state revenue agencies and many companies are also dodging payment.
• Fowler disclosed that FIRS added over 800,000 to FIRS corporate taxpayers’ list while States increased their taxpayers’ numbers by 3.4 million.
• Kano State added the highest numbers of taxpayers with 900,000 new taxpayers.
• The FIRS Executive Chairman said  very soon taxpayers will be able to pay taxes online from the comfort of their bedroom.Also, evidence of payment of WITHOLDING taxes will be sent immediately after payment, to the email addresses of taxpayers.

Nigeria collected a total of N3.7 trillion in taxes in 2015 out of which N1.65 trillion was non-oil taxes.