The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) has given foreign shipping companies lifting Nigeria’s crude oil till December 31, 2023 to reconcile their tax records.
FIRS Chairman, Zacch Adedeji, said the reconciliation of the records was part of efforts to ensure strict compliance by the companies in their operations with the country’s tax laws.
Adedeji issued the deadline in Lagos at a workshop on taxation of non-resident shipping companies organised by FIRS in conjunction with Oil Producers Trade Section (OPTS) of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industries (LCCI) on Monday.
He said the tax compliance exercises by FIRS on the activities of foreign shipping companies lifting hydrocarbons from Nigeria was part of measures aimed at widening the tax net in order to grow revenue for the government.
He assured the international companies that the agency was only interested in ensuring compliance with the extant tax laws and not out to disrupt their operations.
Section 14 of the Companies Income Tax Act (CITA) 2004 (as amended) makes it mandatory for foreign companies engaging in shipping and air transport operations in Nigeria to file tax returns to continue to carry out their businesses within the country.
Adedeji reminded the companies that his intervention earlier led to the six months grace period given to them to regularise their tax returns and reconcile their tax records before the December 31 deadline set by the FIRS.
“The Federal Government has set a target of increasing Nigeria’s tax-to-GDP ratio to 18% within the next three years. The goal is to achieve this without imposing additional taxes, but by broadening the tax net. The compliance exercise on international shipping companies lifting crude oil from Nigeria is in line with this strategy of broadening the tax net.
“I am sure all the international shipping companies that we contacted are aware of the importance of complying with tax laws in the various jurisdictions they operate. Therefore, I urge the international shipping companies that are not complying with Nigerian tax laws to begin to do so immediately,” he said.
The workshop was attended by members of the International Association of Independent Tanker Owners (INTERTANKO), International Chamber of Shipping, Independent Petroleum Producers Group, government agencies and tax advisers, among others.
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