No Confusion! FG Explains Easy Steps For Paying Taxes In 2026

The Federal Government has reassured Nigerians that the new tax laws, set to take effect on January 1, 2026, will not involve automatic deductions from personal bank accounts.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶

Taiwo Oyedele, Chairman of the Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms, explained that the system is based on self-declaration of income rather than direct debits or surveillance of individual accounts. He gave the assurance during an interview on Channels Television’s year-end programme, 2025 In Retrospect: Charting a Pathway to 2026.

Addressing public concerns, Oyedele emphasized that there are no plans for government agencies to monitor or deduct funds from citizens’ accounts. “People think the government will debit their bank accounts from next year, and how they even came up with that, I have no idea,” he said. “Nobody will debit your account for any amount you transfer. Whether it’s a billion or one thousand naira, at the end of the year, you declare it yourself.”

Self-Declaration, Not Surveillance
Under the new framework, taxpayers are expected to declare their income at the end of the tax year, specifying their taxable earnings. Oyedele said, “You know what constitutes your income and what doesn’t. So you tell the government: ‘This is my income and here is the tax.’”

Exempt individuals can declare their status accordingly. “If you are exempted, you simply declare: ‘This is my income, and I am exempted from tax.’ It’s a very simple process that we are simplifying further,” he added.

Oyedele stressed that the reforms are designed to be simple, transparent, and fair, particularly protecting small business owners and Nigerians with modest incomes. He highlighted that the system will replace a regressive tax structure that disproportionately affected the vulnerable. “One of the biggest benefits is that if you run a small business, are a sole proprietor, or just hustling, the system will no longer be regressive. We’ve made it progressive,” he said.

Earlier, President Bola Tinubu reaffirmed that the implementation of the new tax laws—including those enacted on June 26, 2025, and others effective January 1, 2026—will proceed as planned. He described the reforms as “a once-in-a-generation opportunity to build a fair, competitive, and robust fiscal foundation” for Nigeria.

Tinubu clarified that the laws are not aimed at raising taxes but at driving structural reforms, promoting harmonisation, protecting citizens’ dignity, and strengthening the social contract. He urged all stakeholders to support the rollout, noting that the process is now “firmly in the delivery stage” and that no major issues justify delaying the reforms.