Tax Collection: Digital Initiative For Market Traders, Informal Sector – Report

Reactions have continued to trail the announcement of the Value Added Tax Direct Initiative to enable The Federal Government to collect taxes from Marker traders and the informal sector.

The Nigerian government through the Federal Inland Revenue Service, FIRS, announced the VAT direct initiative, a scheme that would enable FG to collect value added taxes from the informal sector and reduce multiple taxation in the informal economy.

The FIRS disclosed this in a statement on Monday afternoon, stating that it FIRS is partnering with the Market Traders Association of Nigeria MATAN to collect & remit vat from their members especially those in the informal sector using a unified systems technology.

DIGITAL SCHEME

They also noted that ( MATAN) Market Traders Association of Nigeria MATAN has a digital platform that enumerates their members giving them a DIGITAL ID CARD and tracks their turnover so that VAT accrued is collected and remitted to the FIRS.

The FIRS is the agency responsible for collecting valued added taxes in Nigeria and other revenues acruable to the Federal Government.

The FIRS noted that it is partnering with MATAN to collect and remit valued added taxes from their members- especially those in the informal, adding:

A collaboration between firs and MATAN where MATAN promotes awareness on vat collection and remittance in the marketplace and informal sector, while also simplifying vat payment and remittance for the marketplace and informal sector using a purpose-built digital platform.

Many have wondered how this will be achievable.

Some group of experts have said that the Federal government is giving away much-needed financial resources needed for national development in the forms of tax waivers, rebates and pioneer status considerations to organizations that do not need it.

Federal Inland Revenue Service, (FIRS), on their part have explained that a responsive tax system not only ensures revenue generating needed for infrastructural development but also for the provision of social amenities