Excisable goods: MAN cautions FG on introduction of tax stamp

By Yinka Kolawole

The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) has cautioned the national authorities against the imaginable instauration of taxation stamp strategy for excisable goods successful Nigeria, informing of the risks of dense compliance costs, accrued operational bottlenecks, with constricted incremental  revenue.

In a connection yesterday, Director General of MAN, Segun Ajayi-Kadir, said portion manufacturers invited the enactment of the Nigeria Tax Act 2025 which provides a simplified taxation framework, harmonize the taxation authorities and delivers alleviation to industries, peculiarly the tiny and medium-sized industries (SMIs), they nevertheless presumption the imaginable instauration of a taxation stamp strategy for excisable goods arsenic a distraction from the affirmative communicative of the caller taxation laws.

“MAN understands that this information is predicated connected the expected benefits of curbing smuggling and counterfeiting, enhancing transparency and traceability successful the excise regime,  and  supporting  revenue  growth.

“However, arsenic a captious stakeholder, MAN notes with interest that the projected Tax Stamp System warrants cautious reflection and caution. We firmly judge that portion the volition is understandable, grounds astir the satellite shows that the Tax Stamp System often imposes dense compliance costs, creates operational bottlenecks, and yields constricted incremental  revenue,” helium said.

Highlighting immoderate of the  concerns of the manufacturers,  Ajayi-Kadir said the determination contradicts the Nigeria Tax Act 2025, and could pb to upsurge successful illicit trade; accrued costs that would beryllium passed to consumers arsenic producers and importers whitethorn rise prices to retrieve compliance costs; risks to manufacture competitiveness, arsenic Nigerian manufacturers vie with imported brands wrong AfCFTA and beyond.

He added that the taxation stamp strategy tin besides pb to accrued accumulation costs and reduced user demand; gross nonaccomplishment and higher costs; accrued circulation of counterfeit goods; costly implementation that with important economical and operational burdens.

MAN besides noted that the authorities has already invested successful home-grown integer systems that tin present afloat visibility of excise operations, citing the B’Odogwu Automated Excise Register System (ERS) launched by the Nigeria Customs Service, digitizing excise tracking and providing real-time visibility, and the e-invoicing implemented by the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) which captures accumulation and income data.

“These tools already springiness authorities the visibility that taxation stamps assertion to supply without adding redundant layers,” Ajayi-Kadir stated.

“In  view  of  the  above,  MAN is disquieted that a taxation stamp argumentation is coming astatine a clip erstwhile concern operators are already grappling with rising excise rates, precocious vigor prices, inadequate vigor supply, and precocious inflation, making the further load of implementing taxation stamps a superior menace to concern sustainability” helium added

The station Excisable goods: MAN cautions FG connected instauration of taxation stamp appeared archetypal connected Vanguard News.