Tax Tribunal Give Multichoice Approval To Appeal N1.8trn FIRS Levy

The Lagos Tax Appeal Tribunal (TAT) has ruled that Multichoice Nigeria Limited, owners of popular cable television services, DSTV, has met the conditions to appeal against the N900bn levied on it by the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS).

The decision is coming two months after a Tax Appeal Tribunal sitting in Lagos ordered Multichoice to pay 50 per cent of N1.8trn which the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) had determined through a forensic audit to be the tax liability owed the government by Multichoice Nigeria.

By implication, the company is expected to pay the sum of N900bn to the tax authority before the matter could be heard.

The FIRS had on April 7, issued Notices of Assessment and Demand Note in the sum of N1.82trn to Multichoice, which was disputed.

THE WHISTLER had reported that following the dispute, Multichoice had filed a suit in the TAT in August which it was ordered to settle the 50 per cent based on the Order XI of the TAT Procedure Rules 2010.

The court had told Multichoice that for the case to be heard, based on the Order XI of the TAT Procedure Rules 2010, it must make the statutory deposit required under Paragraph 15(7) of the Fifth Schedule to the Federal Inland Revenue Service (Establishment) Act 2007 (FIRS Act).

In certain defined circumstances to which the Multichoice appeal fits, Paragraph 15(7) of the Fifth Schedule to the Federal Inland Revenue Service (Establishment) Act 2007 (FIRS Act) requires persons or companies seeking to contest a tax assessment to pay all or a stipulated percentage of the tax assessed before they can be allowed to argue their appeal contesting the assessment at TAT.