Tag: business environment

  • KPMG Warns Nigeria’s ‘Certified’ Tax Laws Still Contain Errors and Gaps Needing Fixes

    KPMG Warns Nigeria’s ‘Certified’ Tax Laws Still Contain Errors and Gaps Needing Fixes

    In an update published by KPMG Nigeria, the firm said certified versions of Nigeria’s tax reform laws were intended to address discrepancy allegations, but the legislation still contains “errors, inconsistencies, gaps, and omissions” requiring fixes.

    Tax implementation depends on precision—definitions, dispute processes, and administrative powers must be unambiguous to avoid abuse and litigation.

    For businesses, uncertainty raises compliance costs and can delay investment decisions while firms wait for official guidance.

    Reuters reported the dispute over discrepancies and implementation, while reform advocates have publicly framed the rollout as non-negotiable with “No Going Back” messaging.

    Echotitbits take: Watch for amendment bills and administrative guidance notes—fast clarification reduces disruption for SMEs and the capital market.

    Source: The Punch — https://punchng.com/kpmg-flags-errors-gaps-in-gazetted-tax-laws/ —  January 10, 2026

    The Punch 2026-01-10

    Photo Credit: The Punch

  • CPPE: 2026 stability hinges on sustaining reforms, but manufacturing remains fragile without cost relief

    CPPE: 2026 stability hinges on sustaining reforms, but manufacturing remains fragile without cost relief

    2026-01-02 09:00:00
    In an analysis published by The Guardian, the Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise (CPPE) projects Nigeria could see greater stability and growth in 2026 if reforms are sustained, but cautions that manufacturing remains fragile under persistent structural constraints.

    The analysis highlights how energy, logistics and financing costs continue to weigh on factories, arguing that macro stability alone won’t lift the real sector without targeted execution that reduces operating costs.

    CPPE’s framing is that reform continuity must translate into measurable improvements in business conditions, otherwise growth remains narrow and disconnected from jobs and purchasing power.

    Validation: Vanguard echoed the execution theme, reporting that gains hinge on “effective execution” of incentives and enabling measures. AllAfrica reinforced CPPE’s structural-risk warning and quoted: “Nigeria’s manufacturing revival hinges on managing structural risks…”

    Echotitbits take: Reforms must translate into lower production costs. Watch early-2026 signals—grid stability versus self-generation expense, FX predictability for inputs and whether tax changes simplify compliance rather than create new leak points.

    Source: The Guardian — 2025-12-29 (https://guardian.ng/business-services/cppe-projects-stability-growth-in-2026-with-sustained-reforms/)
    The Guardian 2025-12-29

    Photo Credit: The Guardian

  • Tax reform countdown: Manufacturers upbeat as Labour and SMEs warn of backlash

    Tax reform countdown: Manufacturers upbeat as Labour and SMEs warn of backlash

    Photo Credit: The Punch
    2025-12-28 09:00:00

    Reporting by Punch indicates Nigeria’s new tax reform laws are still slated to take effect on January 1, 2026, despite widening pushback from some labour and SME stakeholders.

    Industry groups say the package could simplify compliance and reduce distortions, while critics argue implementation timing and transparency concerns around the final gazetted text could trigger new disputes.

    Government-linked reform advocates have framed the rollout as a shift toward fairness—targeting relief for most workers and smaller firms—while signalling willingness to fix drafting or referencing issues through the legislature without shifting the start date.

    Channels Television quoted committee chairman Taiwo Oyedele saying, “The implication of not implementing the new tax laws by January 1, 2026, is that the bottom 98 per cent of workers remain overtaxed.” AIT Live also reported the government “has affirmed that there will be no reversal in the planned implementation… scheduled to take effect on January 1, 2026.”

    Echotitbits take: The political test is whether implementation becomes a trust-building exercise (clear gazette, plain-language guidance, phased enforcement) or another elite policy fight. Watch the National Assembly’s re‑gazetting process and how quickly tax authorities publish compliance guides for SMEs.

    Source: The Punch — December 28, 2025 (https://punchng.com/four-days-to-tax-reform-manufacturers-excited-labour-smes-threaten-revolt/)

    The Punch 2025-12-28

  • NBA and Atiku demand a halt to new tax laws over alleged ‘gazette’ alterations

    NBA and Atiku demand a halt to new tax laws over alleged ‘gazette’ alterations

    Photo Credit: The Punch
    2025-12-24 06:24:00

    In an update published by Punch, the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar are calling for an immediate suspension of Nigeria’s newly signed tax reform laws, citing allegations that the gazetted text differs from what lawmakers passed.

    The NBA’s concern is procedural legitimacy: if a law’s final text was altered after legislative passage, then implementation becomes legally risky—especially for businesses planning compliance, pricing, and payroll systems around the new regime.

    Atiku’s position is more politically charged, urging investigation and framing the controversy as a major governance breach that could undermine democratic lawmaking.

    The dispute has also opened a second front: whether the executive should proceed with the planned January 1, 2026 implementation date while lawmakers investigate.

    Vanguard reported Atiku asked EFCC to probe the “illegal and unauthorised alterations,” while also quoting the NBA’s call that “all plans for implementation… should be immediately suspended.”

    Echotitbits take: If this isn’t resolved fast, you risk a compliance freeze—companies won’t know which text to obey, and investors hate legal ambiguity. The smart move is a rapid, transparent harmonisation process (and publication of the verified final text) before January 1.

    Source: The Punch — December 24, 2025 (https://punchng.com/nba-atiku-demand-new-tax-law-suspension/)
    The Punch 2025-12-24