Nigeria makes N2tn taxes from Google, Netflix, Facebook and other foreign tech giants

The federal government in 15 months, has reportedly raked in N1.98tn in taxes from Google, Netflix, Facebook, and other foreign companies operating in the country.

The National Bureau of Statistics said the figure includes both Company Income Tax and Value Added Tax. 

The Federal Inland Revenue Service noted that the CIT is a 30 percent tax imposed on the profit of companies, while the VAT is a 7.5 percent consumption tax paid for and borne by the final consumer for goods purchased and services rendered. 

The Companies Income Tax (Significant Economic Presence) Order of 2020, an amendment of the Finance Act 2019, was issued by the former Minister of Finance, Zainab Ahmed. The order targeted taxing foreign entities that engage in specific services or digital transactions while having a Significant Economic Presence in Nigeria.

In spite of the complexities encountered in enforcing the law on foreign companies generating income from Nigeria, such companies under the FIRS jurisdiction have collectively paid N1.98 trillion in taxes to the federal government from Q1 2022 to Q1 2023.

Within this time frame, N1.32 trillion was collected through CIT, and N661.93billion through VAT, contributing to the Federal Government’s revenue.