FIRS update on tax implementation negates ease-of-doing-business — OPS

Forum 1 year ago

FIRS update on tax implementation negates ease-of-doing-business — OPS

The Organised Private Sector, OPS, through the Nigeria Employers Consultative Association, NECA, has condemned the recent update implemented by the Federal Inland Revenue Service, FIRS, on its TaxProMax platform, stating that the move negates Government Ease-of-Doing-Business efforts.

NECA also lamented that the update places unnecessary administrative burden on businesses.

In a petition to the Chairman of FIRS, NECA’s Director General, DG, Adewale-Smatt Oyerinde, lamented that the “Recent policy by the FIRS lacks any legal foundation to impose additional burden on purchasers of raw materials and retailers in view of Section 15(1) and Section 17 of the VAT Act.”

NECA in the petition said: “We wish to refer to the recent update implemented by the FIRS on its TaxProMax platform and its impact on organized businesses. As you are well aware, organized businesses have been faced with multi-dimensional challenges in recent times and in our view, policies and programmes of Government or its agencies should ordinarily promote enterprise sustainability and competitiveness.

“However, the recent policy by the FIRS seems to negate Government Ease-of-Doing-Business efforts, places unnecessary administrative burden on businesses. The policy is tantamount to the FIRS abdicating its responsibility to collect VAT from suppliers and also lacks any legal foundation to impose additional burden on purchasers of raw materials and retailers in view of Section 15(1) and Section 17 of the VAT Act, among others.

“Though we note the FIRS efforts at creating awareness on the new policy through a Stakeholders’ engagement, we wish to state that the effort was vexatious and belated as the engagement should have preceded the implementation of the Policy. Furthermore, we view the belated enlightenment as an attempt to confer legality on an otherwise illegal issue.”