The federal government has banned cash collection of taxes and the mounting of roadblocks for tax collection in the informal sector.
The directive is contained in the newly signed presumptive tax regulations and guidelines on the implementation of the tax laws, unveiled on Tuesday in Abuja.
Speaking at the signing ceremony, Olusegun Adesokan, executive secretary of the Joint Revenue Board (JRB), said the framework is designed to eliminate informal, coercive and fragmented tax practices, particularly at the subnational level.
“It bans all forms of cash collection by tax authorities. It also bans the mounting of roadblocks for the collection of taxes,” he said.
Adesokan said the regulations are aimed at entrenching transparency and equity in tax administration, especially within the commerce and informal sectors.
Under the framework, nano and small businesses with an annual turnover of N12 million and below are exempted from tax under the presumptive regime.
“The framework also introduces a tax rate of one per cent of turnover on all other categories of informal businesses, while encouraging the use of technology-driven payment platforms,” Adesokun said.
According to the executive secretary, the guidelines provide a uniform structure for subnational governments to tax the commerce sector and integrate operators into the formal system through a tax identification platform.
‘SYSTEM MARKS TRANSITION FROM LEGISLATIVE APPROVAL TO IMPLEMENTATION’
On his part, Wale Edun, minister of finance and coordinating minister of the economy, said the signing marks the transition from legislative approval to implementation of tax reforms enacted in 2025 and early 2026.
“With the signing of these regulations, we are transitioning from regulation to structured implementation of the tax reforms,” Edun said.
He said the reforms are anchored on transparency, fairness and economic inclusion, noting that the goal is to expand the tax base rather than increase tax rates.
“We will expand the tax base, not raising taxes, but expanding so that each bears his rightful contribution to the common cause,” the minister said.
Edun added that the regulations were developed in collaboration with the JRB to ensure alignment across federal, state and local governments, and that implementation would be closely monitored, with an ombudsman mechanism introduced to safeguard fairness.
Joseph Tegbe, chairman of the national tax policy implementation committee, described the signing as a shift from policy intention to practical execution.
He said the reforms are aimed at correcting distortions in the tax system and replacing arbitrariness with transparency.
The chairman noted that although the informal sector accounts for more than 80 percent of Nigeria’s workforce, its contribution to structured public revenue has remained low due to systemic weaknesses.
Tegbe added that the committee would work with tax authorities to ensure a disciplined and transparent rollout of the new framework.
