Senate passes 2 Tax Reform Bills

By Haruna Salami

Senate at its plenary on Wednesday passed two out of four of President Bola Tinubu’s Tax Reform Bills presented to the National Assembly last year.

 This followed the consideration of the Report of the Committee on Finance on “Tax Reform Bills, 2025 (SBs. 583, 584, 585, 586)” presented by Senator Sani Musa  (Niger East).

 The first is “a bill for an Act to repeal the Federal Inland Revenue Service Establishment Act, No. 13, 2007, and enact the Nigeria Revenue Service Establishment Act to establish the Nigeria Revenue Service charged with powers of assessment, collection of, and accounting for revenue accruable to the Government of the Federation and for related  matters “.

 The second one passed is “a bill for an Act to provide for the assessment, collection of, and accounting for revenue accruing to the federation, federal, states and local governments, prescribed the powers and functions of tax authorities and for related matters related matters”.

With the passage of these two tax bills, the Senate has promised to pass the remaining two on Thursday May 8, 2025.

The four tax reform bills President Bola Tinubu are “Joint Revenue Board (Establishment) Bill, 2025 (SB. 583); Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Bill, 29 (511.209), Nigeria Tax Administration Bill, 2025 (SB. 585); and Nigeria Tax Bill, 2025 (SB. 586)”.

The Senate President Godswill Akpabio in his remarks hoped the two bills that have now passed will “revolutionize tax collection and distribution in Nigeria”.

He thanked the senators for their “patriotic zeal and determination that from morning till past five in the evening you have sacrificed so much to ensure that you dot the “I”s and cross the “t”s and amend where necessary to have a document that can withstand the test of time and work for the whole of Nigeria.

“Today you have dispelled rumorus that these tax reform bills were meant to serve certain section of Nigeria. Of course, they are not. You have shown that these tax reform bills are actually meant for the collective good of all Nigerians to reform our tax administration, tax collection system, and add value to governance in Nigeria”.