The Joint Tax Board (JTB) which is the umbrella body for all State Boards of Internal Revenue (SBIRs) in Nigeria held its 141st meeting on 16 July 2018. The theme of the meeting was 'Leveraging on ICT for Efficient Tax Administration and Revenue Enhancement: Focusing on State IRS'.
Some of the key decisions from the meeting which were captured in the communique issued by JTB includes:
- Directives to all tax authorities to automate their tax administration system in line with global best practices and to take advantage of the newly consolidated National taxpayers' database for effective exchange of information
- Enforcement of the requirement to provide Tax Clearance Certificate (TCC) for all services and transactions that statutorily require its presentation
- Audit of Ministries, Departments and Agencies of Government (MDAs) to be carried out at both federal and state levels in order to reconcile their tax remittance records over the past 6 years
Part of the decision also include the request by SBIRs for political will, autonomy and support from the State Government to enable them meet their various revenue targets. To underscore the commitment to this, Chairmen of SBIRs agreed to resign their appointments if they fail to deliver on targets.
The immediate impact of the JTB decisions is the continued focus on tax penetration and improving the level of tax compliance in the country. Exchange of information between SBIRs, enforcing the requirement to provide TCC to consummate certain transactions, and leveraging technology will enhance transparency and drive compliance.
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