Tax Reforms Panel recommends N800/$ rate for Customs Duties

The Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms has recommended that the Federal Government should adopt an exchange rate of N800 per dollar for Customs import duty.
This proposal was announced by the committee’s chairman, Taiwo Oyedele, during a press briefing in Lagos on Thursday.
Oyedele highlighted the challenges businesses face due to the volatility of the foreign exchange (FX) market, which causes frequent changes in the import duty rate.
He emphasised the need for stability to allow businesses to plan adequately.
“When we did the budget, we said naira to dollar will be N800, now it is 1,000 something. People need to plan,” Oyedele stated.
He further urged the government to sign an order that would set the exchange rate at N800 for customs import duty for the remainder of the year.
The proposal comes in the wake of recent adjustments by the Nigerian Customs Service (NCS) to the FX rate for tariffs and duties.
On May 27, the NCS set the rate at N1,480 per dollar, following recommendations from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) based on official FX market trading activities.
The Director-General of the Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise (CPPE), Muda Yusuf, also weighed in on the issue. He suggested that customs should adopt a quarterly exchange rate between N800/$ and N1000/$ for import duties assessment to provide more predictability for businesses.
Oyedele’s call for a fixed rate of N800 per dollar aims to address concerns and promote better economic planning and stability for businesses engaged in importation.
The committee’s recommendations are part of broader efforts to reform Nigeria’s fiscal and tax policies to enhance economic growth and stability.
Yusuf also talked about the informal sector, saying the reform is going to be an holistic one and there is going to be a single revenue agency. There is also going to be a formula on how the generated revenue will be distributed among the three tiers of government and agencies of government.
Yusuf said the primary purpose of the reform is to trim down the number of taxes and the level of efficiency will also increase, so that the total amount that will come into the revenue pool “will be more than what we have now and there is going to be a framework on how to distribute it.
“What is more important is the enforcement at the level of informal economy and non state actors and others. Because even as we speak, many of those taxes are even illegal. They need security agencies to enforce compliance and prevent the non state actors from harassing the informal sectors.
“Beyond what is being presented, political will is as important as the recommendations from the committee’s. The reform we are talking about that will bring good tax environment. The environment that will make the economy more competitive”.