FIRS – Emporium Reporters

Senate moves to exit FIRS, Customs, NBC, 57 others from National budget

August 30, 2020 Emporium Reporters

The Nigerian Senate has concluded plans to mandate the Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning to exclude about 60 federal agencies from getting allocation from the federal government budget, beginning from next year. The agencies include; Federal Inland Revenue Service, Nigeria Customs Service, Security and Exchange Commission, National Broadcasting Commission and Oil and Gas Free Trade Zone Commission. The senate Joint Committee on Finance and National Planning in had concluded plans to include the proposal in its report which would be submitted to the Senate at plenary on…

NIPOST battles FIRS over Stamp Duty

August 4, 2020August 4, 2020 Emporium Reporters

The Nigerian Postal Service and the Federal Inland Revenue Service are in a battle over their mandates. The Chairman of NIPOST, Maimuna Abubakar, first raised the alarm, while FIRS in a statement on Tuesday said it was only working based on its mandate. Abubakar, in a series of tweets on Twitter, said: “I am worried for NIPOST, having sleepless nights because of NIPOST, we need the general public to come to our aid; FIRS stole our mandate. “FIRS are now selling stamps instead of buying from us. What is happening,…

FIRS: Stamp duty as new black gold, by Muhammad Nami

July 2, 2020 Emporium Reporters

This matter of making the Stamp Duty (and by implication tax revenue) the next black gold has occupied my mind even long before I was appointed the Executive Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service. I have thought that given the way the Nigerian economy has been experiencing some difficulties due to unpredictable shocks in the competitive international oil market, it would be economically wise that the country begins to activate its latent tax potentials such as the stamp duty which has long been neglected. For me, the key…

Lawan tasks FIRS to widen tax net

June 30, 2020June 30, 2020 Emporium Reporters

President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan on Tuesday tasked the Federal Inland Revenue Service(FIRS) to consider widening the tax net rather than overburden the people and business concerns. Lawan was the Guest Speaker at the inauguration of the Inter-Ministerial Committee on the Audit and Recovery of back years Stamp Duties and FIRS’ formal launching of adhesive Stamp for Stamp Duties collection in Nigeria. “We should rather expand the tax net. Let’s not over burden our businesses or our citizens,” Lawan said at the event which took place in Abuja. The…

FIRS stops scores recruited by Fowler from resuming

June 3, 2020 Emporium Reporters

Hundreds of Nigerians who were given letters of employment by the immediate past Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service, Mr. Babatunde Fowler, have not been allowed to resume over six months after they received the letters, The PUNCH has learnt. It was learnt that some of those affected had already resigned from their previous places of work after receiving the letters of employment only to be rendered jobless afterwards. A copy of one of the letters signed on behalf of Fowler by the Director, Human Capital Management Department, Victor Ekundayo,…

NIPOST: We’ve taken steps to address contradictions in stamp duty collection

May 31, 2020 Emporium Reporters

The Nigerian Postal Service (NIPOST) says it has taken actions to address the legal contradictions contained in a circular published by the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS). There has been contention between the FIRS and NIPOST over the custodian of stamp duty after the implementation of the stamp duty act. NIPOST insists that it is empowered with the statutory power to print, mint, produce, retail, and provide adhesive postage stamps. In a recently released circular, the FIRS said it now has a portal for automated stamp duties collection; where all stamp…

FIRS denies staff tested positive of coronavirus

March 22, 2020March 22, 2020 Emporium Reporters

Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), has denied a report that said a member of staff at the FIRS headquarters in Abuja has been tested positive to COVIV-19. FIRS stated that no member of staff at the FIRS has tested positive to COVID-19 as being peddled on Social Media. The Service confirmed that a member of staff who went to pick his wife from the airport following her return from a trip abroad was currently and voluntarily observing the Federal Government advisory of self-isolation alongside his spouse at the couple’s home…

FIRS Contributes More Than 59.7% To Federation Account, says RMAFC

September 5, 2019 Emporium Reporters

The Chairman of the Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) Chief Elias Mbam has commended the efforts of the Federal Inland Revenue Service FIRS towards revenue generation, stated that the agency contributed 59.7 percent, representing more than half of revenues to Federation Account in the last three months. Mbam said this on Thursday during a visit to FIRS Headquarters by the Commission. “I want to observe with pleasure that in the last three months, the FIRS has been the major contributor to the federation account. The average contribution from…

Buhari Queries FIRS Chairman Over Suspected Non-remittance Of Tax

August 19, 2019August 19, 2019 Emporium Reporters

President Muhammadu Buhari has issued a letter to Babatunde Fowler, Executive Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service, asking him to respond to discrepancies in tax collected by the agency. Fowler, whose tenure expired on Saturday, was asked to explain why there exist obvious differences between the budgeted collections and actual collections for the period 2015 to 2018. The letter to Fowler signed by Chief of Staff to the President, Abba Kyari, reads, “Your attached letter (FIRS/EC/CWP/0249/19/027 dated 26 July 2019) on the above subject matter, refers. “We observed significant…

Billionaire Tax Debtors pay N13b to FIRS within a month

September 23, 2018 Emporium Reporters

Less than a month after it commenced its substitution of accounts of recalcitrant billionaire taxpayers, the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) has collected N12.66 in tax revenue. The Executive Chairman, FIRS, Tunde Fowler, disclosed this at the weekend when he received the new Minister of Finance, Hajia Zainab Ahmed during his spot visit to Revenue House, FIRS headquarters in Abuja. Fowler spoke as Hajia Zainab Ahmed, the new finance minister commended the agency for shoring-up the non-oil revenue: “The Ministry of Finance will continue to work collaboratively with FIRS to…