LEGAL AND INSTITUTIONAL FRAMEWORKS FOR THE NIGERIA REVENUE SERVICE (ESTABLISHMENT) ACT 2025 VIS-A-VIS THE TAX ENFORCEMENT POWERS OF THE NIGERIA REVENUE SERVICE

Abstract

The Nigeria Revenue Service Act seeks to provide for a legal, institutional and regulatory framework for the administration of taxes and revenue under any law made by the Nigerian National Assembly and to account for such taxes and revenue collected. The Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Act, 2025 repeals the Federal Inland revenue Service (Establishment) Act, No 13, 2007 and enact the subject of this work the NRS is charged with the powers of assessment, collection and accounting for revenue accruable to the government of the federation. Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Bill which is the subject of this work, the NRS repeals the current FIRS Act and create a more autonomous and performance driven national revenue agency for Nigeria, the mandate of the new NRS is basically non-tax revenue collection, to be more accountable, transparent and to provide more efficient ways of dealing with tax related issues. This work focuses on the powers of NRS, its legal and institutional framework in Nigeria with their everyday responsibilities. Doctrinal method of data collection is adopted, Statutes, books, journal articles and many other documents are used. Nigeria Tax Act which will promote the ease of doing business in Nigeria, to consolidate Nigeria’s fragmented and multiple tax laws into a more harmonised one, to reduce multiplicity of taxes and eliminating duplication, the law will help business, reduce tax payers’ compliance burden and help create a predictable tax system. Nigeria Tax Administration Act will help provide a more uniform legal and operational framework for tax administration in Nigeria both at the federal, State and Local Governments and the Joint Revenue Board (Establishment) Act that is expected to provide a formal governance structure of tax administration in Nigeria among the tax authorities and all government owned agencies, the law introduces and oversight functions using the Tax Appeal Tribunal and the Office of the Tax Ombudsman. It is recommended that the full and honest enforcement of the Act be ensured.