Businesses, Employees Must File Tax Returns By March 31 — Oyedele

The Chairman of the Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms, Taiwo Oyedele, has called on Nigerians to comply with the law by filing their annual tax returns, stressing that both employers and individuals are required to do so.

Oyedele made the call during a webinar organised for HR managers, payroll officers, chief financial officers (CFOs), and tax managers, in collaboration with the Joint Revenue Board. The webinar was shared on YouTube.

Speaking at the event, Oyedele noted that while some employers may have already filed their annual returns, many others are yet to comply.

“In terms of filing returns, you need to file annual returns as employers for your employees. Many of you must have done that already. If you haven’t, you have just a couple of days left to file those returns, including projections of how much you will pay your staff,” he said.

He also emphasised that individual taxpayers are required to file self-assessment returns, lamenting the low level of compliance across the country.

“This is one area where we have been non-compliant in Nigeria. In many states, more than 90 per cent—even the most sophisticated statescannot boast of five per cent filing returns,” Oyedele said.

The tax reform committee chairman further clarified that employees cannot assume their tax obligations end once their employers deduct taxes from their salaries.

“Many people assume that if they are an employee and the employer has deducted pay, they don’t have to do anything. That is wrong. Both under the old and new tax laws, you must still file your returns,” he explained.

Oyedele assured Nigerians that tax authorities are taking steps to simplify the filing process.

“I’m sure the tax authorities, Joint Revenue Board, and various state internal revenue services are working on how to make this process simpler and easier. All of us must file our returns, including those earning low income. You must file returns by 31st March of the year in respect of the previous fiscal year,” he said.

He added that under the new tax laws, businesses benefiting from tax incentives are now required to disclose such incentives when filing their returns.

“Under the new tax law, if you operate a business as an enterprise and you enjoy certain incentives, you have the obligation to disclose those incentives. There’s a disclosure requirement for tax incentives, which must be made when filing tax returns or shortly after,” Oyedele stated.