Tax revenue rises 113% to N27.1trn in three years — NRS

The Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) has disclosed that Nigeria’s tax revenue climbed by 113 per cent in less than three years, increasing from N12.3 trillion in 2023 to N27.1 trillion as of July 2026.

The NRS attributed the sharp rise to the digitisation of the tax system, the implementation of four new tax reform laws, the restructuring of the revenue agency, and an executive order designed to eliminate loopholes in tax administration.

In an internal report on the state of the Nigerian economy obtained on Sunday, the agency said the country had made significant progress from a period of severe macroeconomic challenges to a more stable and resilient economic environment following reforms introduced by President Bola Tinubu’s administration.

The report stated that tax collections had more than doubled over the period, driven by reforms aimed at improving compliance and strengthening revenue generation.

“The Nigerian economy has moved decisively from acute macroeconomic distress toward a more stable and increasingly resilient footing,” the report stated.

According to the NRS, the Tinubu administration inherited four major structural challenges that weakened government revenue and slowed economic growth.

Kano govt to provide food support for 1,500 newlyweds

These included an unsustainable fuel subsidy regime, an opaque foreign exchange system, a struggling oil sector, and a tax base that was significantly below its potential.

While acknowledging that the reforms initially imposed economic hardships, the agency said key economic indicators had since shown signs of improvement.

It pointed to easing inflation, an improved balance of payments, higher crude oil production, Nigeria’s emergence as a net exporter of petroleum products, and stronger tax collections as evidence of the economy’s recovery.

The report also noted that the national minimum wage had doubled between 2023 and 2026, while citing estimates by the United Nations Children’s Fund that the number of out-of-school children had fallen from 20 million to 18.3 million following government interventions.

The NRS further credited the Federal Government’s naira-for-crude initiative with the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and other local refineries for reshaping the country’s petroleum trade.

According to the agency, the policy has helped Nigeria transition from decades of reliance on imported petroleum products to becoming a net exporter.