Introduction:
The Companies Income Tax Act (CITA) requires companies to file their income tax returns and pay their income taxes within six months after their accounting year-end. Most companies have their accounting period spanning from 1 January to 31 December and as such are required to file their income tax returns and pay their income taxes on or before 30 June of the following year. It is common practice for companies to file along with their income tax other corporate taxes such as National Information Technology Development Agency Levy (NITDA Levy), National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure Levy (NASENI Levy), Police Trust Fund Levy (PTF Levy), and Tertiary Education Tax (TET).
In this TaxThursday Publication, we succinctly present salient factors to consider when filing corporate taxes in Nigeria.
Corporate taxes payable in Nigeria:
| Principal Legislation | CITA |
| Tax Rate Section 9(1) CITA Section 40(1) CITA Section 105 CITA | Tax is chargeable on the profits of a company derived in, brought into, or received in Nigeria (provided such profits are not subject to tax under the Capital Gains Tax Act, Petroleum Profits Act, or Personal Income Tax Act). The applicable tax rates are indicated below. 20% of total profits of companies that earn gross turnover greater than |
| Tax relief on Interest on foreign loans Section 11(1) CITA | Interests payable on foreign loans are partially exempt from tax as shown in the table below. Repayment Period Grace Period Including Moratorium Tax Exemption Above 7 years Not less than 2 years 70% 5-7 years Not less than 18 months 40% 2-4 years Not less than 12 months 10% Below 2 years Nil Nil Repayment period means the agreed tenor of the loan facility provided that where the loan is paid before expiration of the agreed time, the tax exemptions provided under the CITA would be adjusted accordingly. Moratorium refers to the period at the beginning of the loan term during which the borrower is not expected to make any repayment of principal or interest. |
