The Federal Inland Revenue Service, FIRS, has disclosed that it generated N3.30 trillion in revenue for the government from taxes in 2016.

Though lower than the N3.74 trillion revenue recorded in 2015, the 2016 figure is considered a good performance, when factoring the impact of drop in oil prices and value of stocks during the period.

The Chairman of FIRS, Mr Tunde Fowler, represented by the Deputy Director, Communications and Servicom, FIRS, Mrs Nneka Ifekwuna, made this known at the closing of a three-day workshop on taxation for journalists in Lagos.

He informed that the organisation had stepped up the application of technology in revenue collection, and was also applying persuasion and enlightenment of uncooperative tax payers to boost collection.

Fowler mentioned the nationwide registration of taxpayers, for purposes of expanding the tax net as one of the current projects of the organisation, which has yielded 814,000 new taxpayers for FIRS and 3.4 million taxpayers for Internal Revenue Services in the states as at December 2016.

According to FIRS chairman, Nigeria had a national tax roll of 14 million payers as at December 2016, which is reflective of the efforts by the FIRS to increase revenue collection.

He also disclosed that compliance level of filing of tax returns by tax payers at FIRS offices nationwide had improved, adding that FIRS had embarked on initiatives, including shielding tax payers from the burden of carrying forward tax liabilities that rose as result of penalty and interest, to promote voluntary compliance.

Fowler also mentioned the support from the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation, whose collaboration with the FIRS had improved remittance of taxes, including Withholding Tax (WHT), Value Added Tax (VAT), by Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs).

He reiterated the commitment of FIRS in staying true to its core values of professionalism, integrity, efficiency, ownership and collective responsibility in the discharge of its statutory mandate.

Financialslot