CITN Raises Concern Over Alleged Discrepancies in Tax Law, Warns of Compliance Risk

Omolabake Fasogbon

The Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria (CITN) has raised concerns over alleged discrepancies between versions of the 2025 tax laws passed by the National Assembly and the gazetted copies in circulation.

The institute warned that any proven divergence could create legal uncertainty and heighten compliance risks for taxpayers, professionals and investors.

In a position statement issued amid growing public debate over alleged post-passage alterations, the President and Chairman of Council of CITN, Mr. Innocent C. Ohagwa, who signed the statement raised concerns about the alignment between legislative drafts and the final gazetted Acts, describing the integrity of the law-making process as fundamental to the rule of law, good governance and public confidence in democratic institutions.

The tax laws, scheduled to take effect January 1, 2026, were signed recently by President Bola Tinubu.

Ohagwa stressed that taxation, more than most areas of law, demands the highest level of accuracy, transparency and procedural fidelity because of its far-reaching impact on government revenue, businesses and citizens.

“Recent public discourse has raised concerns that certain provisions of the newly enacted tax laws may differ from the versions passed by the National Assembly, allegedly through modification, insertion or removal of clauses after legislative process.

“As Nigeria’s foremost professional tax body, CITN holds responsibility to speak where issues arise that may undermine legislative integrity and regulatory certainty”, he said.

The President warned that if such discrepancies are established, they could undermine the supremacy of the legislature, create legal ambiguity, erode public and investor confidence as well as expose taxpayers and practitioners to unintended liabilities.

“For taxation, which thrives on exactitude of legislation, no effort should be spared in getting it right from the onset to avoid overwhelming challenges in the future,” the statement reads.

CITN stressed further that the constitution and established parliamentary practice require that laws assented to and gazetted must be identical to those duly passed by the legislature, and that any post-passage changes must follow constitutionally recognised procedures.

The institute maintained that deviation from standard, whether intentional or otherwise compromises rule of law, separation of powers and predictability and stability of the tax system,amongst other consequences.

It thus called for immediate verification of the contested Acts through a comparison of the versions passed by the National Assembly with the enrolled and gazetted laws.

It urged clear public clarification where discrepancies are identified and prompt corrective action in line with constitutional and legislative procedures.

Such steps, CITN said, would prevent prolonged uncertainty and strengthen confidence in the legislative process.

Beyond the immediate controversy, the institute also recommended systemic safeguards to prevent a recurrence, including stronger document control and version-tracking mechanisms, clear audit trails throughout the drafting and enrolment stages, enhanced inter-institutional checks before presidential assent and structured stakeholder review for major tax legislation.

It concluded by expressing readinessto offer technical expertise and professional support to relevant authority, towards promoting clarity, transparency, and effectiveness of Nigeria’s tax laws and system in general.