FG Targets N1tn Revenue from Stamp Duties

James Emejo

The federal government has urged the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) to recover all stamp duties collected on behalf of the federal government but yet to be remitted by government agencies, banks and other companies.

The Secretary to Government of the Federation (SGF) Mr. Boss Mustapha, who gave this charge in Abuja yesterday, added that the federal government was targeting N1trillion from stamp duties.

Speaking at the inauguration of the inter-ministerial committee on Audit and Recovery of Back years stamp duties and the launch of Federal Inland Revenue Service adhesive stamp, the SGF noted that the government will focus on revenue from stamp duty.

He disclosed that stamp duties have the potential to yield up to N1trillion annually if properly harnessed.

Mustapha told the FIRS that the federal government expects the Inter-Ministerial Audit and Recovery Committee “to judiciously undertake an audit and recover on behalf of the Government all stamp duties charged from January 2016 to date but yet to be remitted by the relevant Ministries Departments and Agencies, Deposit Money Banks and Nigerian InterBank Settlement System Plc among others.

In order to ensure transparency and accountability, Boss Mustapha directed and requested that “all recoveries made by this Committee be remitted to appropriate Stamp Duty Account maintained by the federal government with the Central Bank of Nigeria.”

He also directed “all relevant MDAs particularly the Central Bank of Nigeria, NIBBs, DMBs, NIPOST and FIRS should give maximum cooperation to the

Committee in the discharge of its mandate.”

He said it had become imperative to recover stamp duties because of government’s dwindling revenue “which was caused by the negative impact of the Coronavirus pandemic which has led to a budget deficit of over N5trillion.”

Responding, the Executive Chairman of the FIRS Mohammad Nami said the stamp duty recovery efforts will start from his agency and directed the finance and accounts department to remit

39 billion being stamp duties collected by the Service to the Committee.

ENOCK REUBEN L-R: Senior Organising Officer, All Progressives Congress (APC), Alhaji Sabiu Bello; Director of Organisation, APC, Prof. Al-Mustapha Usuudu; APC governorship aspirant in Ondo State, Chief Olushola Oke; and former member of House of Representatives, Hon. Mike Omogbehin, during the submission of expression of interest forms by the aspirant at APC secretariat in Abuja... yesterday