An ad-hoc committee set up by the House of Representatives Minority Caucus has confirmed that illegal alterations were made to some of Nigeria’s recently enacted tax reform laws.
The committee, which is investigating discrepancies in the laws passed by the National Assembly and those published in the official gazette, said the most significant changes were found in the Nigeria Tax Administration Act, 2025.
The findings were contained in the committee’s interim report released on Friday. The controversy erupted after Abdulsamad Dasuki, a member of the House, raised concerns on the floor of the chamber over the circulation of versions of the tax laws that differed from those approved by lawmakers and signed into law by President Bola Tinubu.
In response, the Minority Caucus, in a statement issued on December 28, 2025, pledged to defend the independence of the legislature, warning that the circulation of altered laws amounted to an assault on democracy and the constitutional role of the National Assembly.
To probe the matter, the caucus, led by Kingsley Chinda, on January 2, 2026, constituted a seven-member fact-finding committee chaired by Victor Ogene. Other members include Aliyu Garu (Bauchi), Stanley Adedeji (Oyo), Ibe Osonwa (Abia), Marie Ebikake (Bayelsa), Shehu Fagge (Kano), and Gaza Gbefwi Jonathan (Nasarawa).
Meanwhile, on January 3, 2026, the House spokesman, Akin Rotimi, announced that Speaker Tajudeen Abbas had ordered the public release of the four tax reform Acts signed by the President for verification. The Acts are the Nigeria Tax Act, 2025; Nigeria Tax Administration Act, 2025; National Revenue Service (Establishment) Act, 2025; and Joint Revenue Board (Establishment) Act, 2025.
In its preliminary report signed by Ogene, the committee said a comparison of the certified true copies released by the House and the gazetted versions confirmed Dasuki’s allegations. It noted that three different versions of the Nigeria Tax Administration Act, 2025 were in circulation.
According to the committee, the instruction to “align” the Acts with the Federal Government Printing Press was an indication that the previously gazetted versions contained procedural anomalies that unlawfully encroached on the legislative powers of the National Assembly.
The committee identified several areas of concern in the Nigeria Tax Administration Act, 2025. It said Section 29(1) on reporting thresholds was altered, with the certified version setting thresholds at ₦50m for individuals and ₦100m for companies, while the gazetted version reduced the individual threshold to ₦25m instead of ₦250m.
It described the change as a deliberate attempt to expand the tax net by illegally amending an already enacted law.
The committee also faulted the insertion of new subsections 41(8) and 41(9), which require taxpayers to deposit 20 per cent of disputed tax amounts before appealing decisions of the Tax Appeal Tribunal at the High Court, noting that these provisions were absent from the version passed by lawmakers.
Additionally, it observed that Section 64 of the gazetted Act expanded the enforcement powers of tax authorities to include arrests and the sale of seized assets without a court order, a provision not contained in the authentic Act.
The committee further noted that the altered version removed petroleum income tax and VAT from the definition of federal taxes under Section 3(1)(b), describing the move as an affront to the exclusive lawmaking powers of the National Assembly.
It also pointed out that Section 39(3) of the gazetted Act mandated tax computation for petroleum operations in US dollars, contrary to the original provision, which required computation in the currency of the transaction.
Concerns were equally raised over the National Revenue Service (Establishment) Act, 2025, where the committee said Sections 30(1)(d) and 30(3) on National Assembly oversight were deleted. It noted that while the authentic Act provided for legislative oversight through summons and mandatory reporting, the gazetted version removed quarterly and annual reporting requirements.
Describing the situation as marked by “anomalies, illegalities and impunity,” the committee said the findings justified a deeper investigation. It consequently requested additional time to conduct a comprehensive examination of the matter.
