Nigeria’s Minister of State for Finance, Taiwo Oyedele, has acknowledged that the country’s newly introduced tax reform laws contain errors, saying corrective measures are already being prepared to address the problems.
Speaking during a fireside chat at the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Section on Legal Practice annual conference, Oyedele said inconsistencies were introduced during the drafting and legislative process. The event focused on understanding Nigeria’s new tax reforms and how they would be implemented in practice.
According to a statement from the Fiscal Reforms Committee on Friday, the minister admitted that the mistakes were linked to procedural lapses, including “manual processes and multiple stages of review” during law-making. He added that a legislative review was underway to identify and correct the discrepancies.
Oyedele urged Nigerians to wait for the outcome of the ongoing legislative probe into the issues raised, assuring that the government would act once the review is completed. He also said a proposed Finance Bill would be used to correct the identified errors.
He stressed the need for a more transparent law-making process, saying: “What we need is a more transparent and reliable legislative process where every version of a law is publicly available.”
The minister also defended the broader intention behind the tax reforms, saying enforcement would not be arbitrary. According to him, the policy is designed around fairness, transparency and clearer interpretation of tax rules.
He explained that understanding the intent behind tax laws was just as important as reading the provisions themselves, arguing that policy direction should guide implementation.
Oyedele further pointed to weaknesses in Nigeria’s previous tax system, saying inconsistencies between personal and corporate taxation discouraged businesses from formalising their operations. He said the new reforms were aimed at improving consistency, encouraging formal business structures, and reducing discretion in tax administration.
He also warned that frequent changes in policy could undermine investor confidence. “If policies can change overnight, it sends the wrong signal to investors. Consistency is critical,” he said.
On equity in taxation, Oyedele said the reforms were designed to protect low-income earners and small businesses. He noted that Nigerians earning about ₦1 million annually, as well as millions of small enterprises, should not face heavy tax burdens.
“Nearly half of working Nigerians earn less than ₦70,000 monthly. Taxing them aggressively would be unjust,” he added.
He also said the new framework removes minimum tax requirements for businesses operating at a loss, describing the previous system as effectively taxing capital rather than profit.
Oyedele added that Nigeria still needed to improve the efficiency of its revenue collection and utilisation, noting that the country continues to lag behind peers such as South Africa in tax performance.
The development comes amid earlier concerns over alleged discrepancies between the gazetted versions of the tax laws and those passed by the National Assembly.
In December 2025, a member of the House of Representatives, Abdussamad Dasuki, raised concerns that different versions of the tax laws were in circulation, suggesting they did not fully match what lawmakers approved. His claim led to political debate and prompted the House of Representatives to set up a committee to review and reconcile the documents.
Authorities say the ongoing review and planned legislative corrections are expected to clarify the situation and restore confidence in the new tax framework.
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