By Audrey Lotechukwu
MON, 07 DEC, 2020-theGBJournal- A total of N4.178 trillion has been generated by the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) from January to the end of October 2020, representing 99 percent of the revenue house target for 2020.
The target for the period was N4.23 trillion and the target for the whole year is N5.76 trillion, according to the Executive Chairman, Federal Inland Revenue Service Muhammad Nami, who also declared that the country’s revenue generation has improved tremendously despite the challenges posed by COVID-19.
He was speaking at the opening day of the 2020 Lagos International Trade Fair December 4, where he highlighted FIRS efforts at raising the nation’s tax profile as well as strides taken by the Federal Government’s to ease the burden of tax payment on companies and the active role played to cushion the effect of coronavirus pandemic on taxpayers through palliatives.
Some of the palliatives Nami mentioned include the additional window of penalty and interest waiver for the business that pay up in full, the principal portion of their outstanding liabilities between 4th November, 2020 and 31st December, 2020, provision for the outstanding arrears resulted from (a) self-assessment (b) government assessment arising from desk audit, field audit or investigation, extension of monthly WHT and VAT Returns filing to end of the month, Providing Taxpayers who earn their revenue in Naira and are facing challenges in sourcing for FOREX to offset their tax liabilities, the option of paying in Naira at the prevailing Investors & Exporters (I & E) FOREX window rate on the day of payment.
The FIRS boss announced however, that the window of opportunity for “waivers of penalties and interest on outstanding taxes arising from desk examinations, audit exercises, investigations or all other forms of tax assessment” will close on December 31, 2020.
‘’ Consequently, all concerned taxpayers are to note that after the expiration date of 31st December, 2020, the Service shall recover all outstanding debt with penalties and interest, in accordance with the provisions of the extant tax laws such as “the power of substitution” conferred on it by Section 31 of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (Establishment) Act 2007,” he said.
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