The House of Representatives has confirmed that Nigeria’s newly gazetted tax reform laws were subjected to illegal alterations after being passed by the National Assembly and signed into law by President Bola Tinubu.
This confirmation followed an interim report by the House Minority Caucus Ad-hoc Committee investigating allegations that unauthorized changes were made to the tax reform Acts.
According to the committee, its findings revealed discrepancies between the versions of the laws approved by lawmakers and those later published in the official gazette. The panel identified the Nigeria Tax Administration Act, 2025, as the most affected legislation.
The probe was initiated after a motion was raised on the floor of the House by Abdulsamad Dasuki, who alerted lawmakers to differences between the tax laws passed by the legislature and versions already in circulation.
In reaction to the concerns, the Minority Caucus, in a statement issued on December 28, 2025, vowed to defend the independence of the legislature, warning that the circulation of what it described as “fake laws” constituted a serious threat to constitutional democracy.
To that end, the caucus, led by Kingsley Chinda, constituted a seven-member fact-finding committee on January 2, 2026. The panel is chaired by Victor Ogene, with members Aliyu Garu (Bauchi), Stanley Adedeji (Oyo), Ibe Osonwa (Abia), Marie Ebikake (Bayelsa), Shehu Fagge (Kano), and Gaza Gbefwi Jonathan (Nasarawa).
On January 3, the House, through its spokesman Akin Rotimi, announced that Speaker Tajudeen Abbas had directed the release of certified true copies of the four tax reform Acts signed by the President to allow for public examination.
The laws include the Nigeria Tax Act, 2025; Nigeria Tax Administration Act, 2025; National Revenue Service (Establishment) Act, 2025; and the Joint Revenue Board (Establishment) Act, 2025.
In its preliminary findings, the committee said a side-by-side comparison of the certified copies and the gazetted documents substantiated Dasuki’s allegations.
“There were some alterations as alleged, especially in the Nigeria Tax Administration Act, 2025.
“There were three different versions of the documents in circulation, particularly the Nigeria Tax Administration Act, 2025,” the committee stated.
The interim report, signed by Ogene, noted that the existence of multiple versions of the Act raised serious concerns about the credibility of the legislative process.
The panel further argued that directives to “align” the Acts with the Federal Government Printing Press pointed to grave procedural failures.
According to the committee, the gazetted version of the laws unlawfully intruded into the constitutional powers of the National Assembly.
“There was a clear indication that there were procedural anomalies in the previously gazetted version that illegally encroached on the core mandate of the National Assembly,” the report said.
Among the specific issues identified was the alteration of Section 29(1) relating to reporting thresholds. While the version passed by lawmakers fixed the threshold at N50 million for individuals and N100 million for companies, the gazetted document reportedly reduced the individual threshold to N25 million. The committee described this as an attempt to expand the tax base through executive interference.
The panel also faulted the insertion of new subsections 41(8) and 41(9), which require a 20 per cent deposit of disputed tax liabilities before appeals can proceed from the Tax Appeal Tribunal to the High Court. It said these provisions were not included in the version approved by the legislature.
Additionally, the committee observed that Section 64 of the gazetted Act broadened the enforcement authority of tax agencies by permitting arrests through law enforcement bodies and the sale of seized assets without court approval—powers absent from the original Act.
Further alterations were flagged in Section 3(1)(b), where petroleum income tax and VAT were reportedly excluded from the definition of federal taxes, and in Section 39(3), which now mandates tax computation for petroleum operations in U.S. dollars instead of “the currency of the transaction” as passed by lawmakers.
Beyond the Nigeria Tax Administration Act, the committee also raised concerns about the National Revenue Service (Establishment) Act. It said key provisions on National Assembly oversight, particularly Sections 30(1)(d) and 30(3), were omitted from the gazetted version.
According to the panel, the deletions weakened legislative powers of summons, reporting, and accountability, thereby undermining checks and balances.
Describing the findings as evidence of widespread “irregularities and illegalities” that pose a threat to democratic governance, the committee said the scope of the investigation should be expanded.
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