The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) says about 45,283 companies are not filing their full taxes.
These companies have a banking turnover of between N100 million and N999 million, the FIRS executive chairman, Mohammed Nami, said while speaking on Wednesday at a virtual meeting organised by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC).
According to Nami, N45.8 billion had been recovered from defaulting taxpayers as of September 2019.
He added that 6,722 companies, partnerships, and enterprises with a banking turnover of N1 billion were not paying taxes as of May 2018.
While addressing the topic, ‘Report on Illicit Financial Flows (IFFs) in Relation to Tax’ these were discovered when FIRS wrote to all the commercial banks in the country in May 2018, requesting a list of companies, partnerships, and enterprises with N1 billion banking turnover.
According to him, a total of 23 banks responded and provided a list of 18,602 companies, partnerships, and enterprises with N1 billion banking turnover.
“The companies, partnerships, and enterprises paying some type of taxes were 11,830 and 6,722 were not paying taxes,” Nami said.
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The FIRS boss explained that N37.327 billion had been recovered from defaulting taxpayers as of September 2019 and there are 4,500 companies, partnerships and enterprises to be enforced upon.
The FIRS boss said corruption and abuse of office by civil servants and political public office holders remained a major enabler of illicit financial flows (IFFs) from the country.
He added that the unwholesome practices of multinationals, financial institutions and oil and gas companies remained the biggest component of IFFs in Nigeria.
“We are striving to reduce the money laundering, terrorism financing, illicit flow of money from Nigeria and the effects of beneficial ownership as it is causing economic downturn which has an unprecedented effect on the economy and lives of Nigerians,” he said.
The ICPC chairman, Bolaji Owasanoye, said taxation has played a strategic role in the economy of states hence the need for the gathering.
Owasanoye explained that taxation is more important for Nigeria because of the struggle to break the dependence on oil revenue and boost tax revenue.
