Thursday, September 26, 2024 - Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, has revealed that foreigners earning income in Nigeria will henceforth pay taxes under a proposed amendment to the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) Bill, 2024.
Onanuga stated this on Wednesday,
September 25, while briefing State House correspondents in Abuja.
He said the proposed NIMC bill was part of
the Economic Stabilisation Bills approved by the Federal Executive Council
(FEC) on Monday, soon to be forwarded to the National Assembly for
consideration.
“This bill will amend the law that was
made some years ago, and it now provides, if the National Assembly passes that
bill, that everybody living in Nigeria, foreigners, all of them will now be
registered and be given tax identity.
“Once you are doing some work here
and you are earning income, you will be registered and given tax identity and
you will be taxed, and you come under our tax structure.
“The law that was set up initially
precluded foreigners from being registered, and so they were not taxed,” said
Onanuga.
He said another bill, which was part of the
Economic Stabilisation Bills, had to do with the operating laws guiding the
Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) and the Nigerian
Port Authority (NPA).
“Now,
amendments are also proposed so that all their fees, charges, levies, and fines
accruing to them will now be paid in Naira at the applicable exchange rate.
“Presently
those agencies are only charging in dollars, but with the proposed bill, they
will now charge in Naira.
“This government wants to put a lot of
emphasis on our national currency. Instead of everything being dollarized in
our economy, the government is now saying, pay in Naira,” said Onanuga.
0 Comments