The Minister of State for Finance, Mr. Taiwo Oyedele, has acknowledged the existence of errors in Nigeria’s newly introduced tax reform laws, assuring that steps are already underway to address the identified issues.
Oyedele disclosed this during a fireside chat at the 2026 Annual Conference of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Section on Legal Practice, themed “From Policy to Practice: Making Sense of Nigeria’s New Tax Reforms,” according to a statement by the Fiscal Reforms Committee.
Providing further clarification in a social media post yesterday, the Fiscal Reforms Committee said the minister attributed the errors to “manual processes and multiple stages of review” in the legislative drafting process.
He noted that corrective measures were being incorporated into a proposed Finance Bill, adding that the situation underscored the need for a more transparent and reliable legislative system.
“What we need is a more transparent and reliable legislative process where every version of a law is publicly available,” Oyedele said.
The minister also assured that the implementation of the new tax laws would not be arbitrary, stressing that the reforms are anchored on transparency, fairness, and clear policy intent. He urged stakeholders to focus not only on the provisions of the laws but also on the rationale behind them, noting that policy intent should guide both interpretation and implementation.
Oyedele highlighted longstanding inconsistencies in Nigeria’s tax system, particularly the imbalance between personal and corporate tax burdens, which he said has discouraged business formalisation.
According to him, the ongoing reforms were designed to promote formalisation, ensure policy consistency, and reduce administrative discretion in tax enforcement.
On inclusivity, Oyedele reiterated that the new tax framework seeks to protect low-income earners and small businesses. He explained that individuals earning around N1 million annually, as well as millions of small enterprises, have limited tax-paying capacity.
“Nearly half of working Nigerians earn less than N70,000 monthly. Taxing them aggressively would be unjust,” he said.
He added that the reforms have eliminated minimum tax on loss-making businesses, describing the previous practice as effectively taxing capital rather than profit.
A member of the House of Representatives, Abdussamad Dasuki, had last December, alleged that the gazetted versions of the tax laws differed from those passed by the National Assembly. In response, the House had constituted a seven-member panel to investigate the claims.
