The National Assembly on Wednesday approved the 2026 budget proposal of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), endorsing a revenue target of N11.074 trillion and an expenditure estimate of N1.295 trillion for the fiscal year.
The approval followed the consideration and adoption of reports by both the Senate and the House of Representatives after separate reviews of the agency’s budget estimates and performance.
Presenting the report of the Senate Committee on Customs, Excise and Tariffs, Chairman of the committee, Isah Jibrin, said the Customs Service exceeded its 2025 revenue target of N6.5 trillion by generating about N7.2 trillion, representing 110.53 per cent performance.
He, however, noted that revenue generation could have been higher but for factors such as the suspension of excise duty on telecommunications services, policies promoting local production of healthcare products and disruptions in global trade arising from the Russia-Ukraine conflict, which affected imports.
The committee also disclosed that although the agency had an approved budget of N1.132 trillion in 2025, actual expenditure stood at N591 billion due largely to delays in project approvals by the Bureau of Public Procurement and the Federal Executive Council, forcing several projects to be rolled over to 2026.
According to the committee, the Customs Service plans to realise the N11.074 trillion revenue target through increased deployment of technology, enhanced revenue recovery mechanisms, real-time audit systems, improved trade facilitation and intensified anti-smuggling operations.
The approved expenditure estimate of N1.295 trillion comprises N421 billion for personnel costs, N307 billion for overhead and N565 billion for capital expenditure.
Funding for the budget is expected to come primarily from the statutory four per cent Free on Board (FOB) levy provided under the Nigerian Customs Service Act, 2023.
Contributing to the debate, Deputy Senate President, Barau Jibrin, commended the committee and the leadership of the Customs Service for what he described as an outstanding performance.
“You have an entity that budgeted to generate about N6.5 trillion but ended up generating N7.2 trillion. That is a wonderful performance and we cannot commend the Comptroller-General and his team enough,” he said.
Barau said the impressive revenue performance justified President Bola Tinubu’s decision to extend the tenure of the Comptroller-General of Customs, adding that the proposal to generate over N11 trillion in 2026 reflected confidence in reforms introduced by the agency’s leadership.
“For an agency to propose generating N11 trillion and spending only N1.2 trillion to run its operations shows remarkable fiscal discipline. This is an institution Nigerians should be proud of,” he added.
Following the adoption of the committee’s recommendations, Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, put the proposals to a voice vote and lawmakers unanimously approved both the revenue target and expenditure estimates.
Akpabio commended the Senate Committee on Customs, Excise and Tariffs for its thorough scrutiny of the budget proposal and expressed confidence that the approved estimates would strengthen the operations of the Customs Service and boost government revenue.
Similarly, the House of Representatives approved the N1.295 trillion expenditure proposal and the N11.074 trillion revenue target after considering the report of its Committee on Customs and Excise.
Lawmakers in the Green Chamber praised the Nigeria Customs Service for surpassing its 2025 revenue target and urged the agency to sustain reforms aimed at improving trade facilitation, curbing smuggling and enhancing revenue generation.
The House also expressed optimism that the approved budget would further strengthen the operational capacity of the Customs Service and support the Federal Government’s revenue drive in the 2026 fiscal year.
