Tax reforms: Poor Nigerians biggest gainers – NRS

The Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) has said the poor are the biggest beneficiaries of the tax reforms introduced by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

Executive Chairman of the NRS, Mr. Zacchaeus Adedeji, stated this during an interview on ARISE Television on Sunday.

He dismissed claims that the Federal Government was increasing the tax burden on citizens, stressing that the reforms were designed to protect low-income earners through wide-ranging exemptions.

According to Adedeji, more than 95 per cent of poor Nigerians are completely exempted from the new tax regime when all reliefs are taken into account.

He explained that the removal of Value Added Tax (VAT) on food items was deliberately targeted at easing the burden on the poor, noting that food accounts for about 90 per cent of their disposable income.

“We have removed VAT entirely from food items. The same applies to transportation, which also largely affects the poor,” he said.

Adedeji added that when the overall impact of the reforms is assessed, low-income Nigerians stand to gain the most.

“If you look at the total and net benefits, the poor are clearly the major beneficiaries of this tax reform,” he said.