March 31 Deadline: You Must File Returns, Oyedele Tells Nigerians

Taiwo Oyedele, Chairman of the Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms, has called on Nigerians to submit their annual tax returns, emphasising that the law requires full compliance from both employers and individual taxpayers.

He made the appeal during a webinar organised in collaboration with the Joint Revenue Board for HR managers, payroll officers, CFOs and tax managers.

Speaking in the session, which was uploaded to YouTube on Friday, Oyedele noted that a large number of Nigerians are still failing to file their self-assessment tax returns.

“In terms of filing returns, you need to file annual returns as employers for your employees. Many of you must have done that already. If you haven’t, you have just a couple of days left to file those returns, including projections of how much you will pay your staff,” he said.

He added that individual taxpayers must also file their self-assessment, noting that compliance in this area remains very low.

“This is one area where we have been non-compliant in Nigeria. In many states, more than 90%—even the most sophisticated states—cannot boast of 5% filing returns,” Oyedele said.

Oyedele explained that the tax reforms make it clear that employees cannot assume their responsibilities end once taxes are deducted from their salaries.

“Many people believe that as long as their employer has deducted tax, they have nothing more to do. That is incorrect. Under both the old and the new tax laws, employees are still required to file their tax returns,” he said.

He reassured Nigerians that efforts are underway to simplify the filing process.

“I am confident that the tax authorities, the Joint Revenue Board and state internal revenue services are working to make tax filing easier and more accessible. Everyone is required to file returns, including low-income earners. Returns for the previous fiscal year must be filed by 31 March,” Oyedele stated.

He also noted that businesses benefiting from tax incentives now have additional disclosure obligations.

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