Nigeria Tax Reforms and Duty-Free Import Updates 2025

Recently, Nigeria has issued several important tax and trade updates, including four new tax reform laws, the Joint Tax Board press release, the Minister of Finance's public notice, and the Customs Service announcement of the introduction of duty-free clearance for imported low-value goods. All published notices, letters, and other documents bring new measures into effect and provide clarifications on existing rules and regulations.

Impact on Taxable Persons

The press release published by the Joint Tax Board clarifies that Nigerians without a taxpayer identification number (TIN) will not be denied access to their bank accounts or blocked from carrying out financial transactions from January 1, 2026. The clarification was made in response to speculation that these restrictions would be imposed on individuals without a TIN.

The Joint Tax Board added that TINs will be automatically generated using existing national identifiers, primarily National Identification Numbers for individuals and company registration numbers for businesses, which will ensure smoother compliance transition without disrupting banking operations. 

Separately, the Minister of Finance suspended the collection of the 4% free-on-board levy on imports after concerns were raised about its inflationary effects and its impact on trade competitiveness, with a review of the levy framework to follow. 

Additionally, the government published four tax laws, thus formalizing the major tax reform. The published laws, more specifically, the Nigeria Tax Law, the Nigeria Tax Administration Law, the Nigeria Revenue Service Law, and the Joint Revenue Board Law, were adopted in June 2025.

Finally, the Customs Service announced the introduction of a USD 300 duty-free threshold for low-value imports effective from September 8, 2025. In addition to covering low-value imports, the new customs measures also apply to e-commerce consignments and passenger baggage. However, the measure is introduced with limits on the frequency of imports. The Customs Service highlighted that it will impose penalties for misuse of the measure, including forfeiture of goods, arrests, and other sanctions defined by the Nigeria Customs Service Law.

Conclusion

With the implementation and introduction of new rules and regulations, the Nigerian government is taking significant steps to modernize its fiscal and customs framework. While the formal adoption of four cornerstone tax reform laws sets a new legal foundation for tax administration, the introduction of a duty-free threshold for low-value imports signals alignment with global e-commerce trends. These measures are expected to contribute to strengthening tax governance and facilitating trade flows.

Source: ENSafrica