President Bola Tinubu has on Thursday signed four executive orders, including the suspension of the 5% excise tax on telecommunication services, as well as the excise duties escalation on locally manufactured products.
Dele Alake, presidential special adviser on special duties, communications and strategy, disclosed the development in Abuja.
Alake said Tinubu also signed the Finance Act (Effective Date Variation) Order, 2023, which now defers the commencement date of the changes contained in the Act from May 23, 2023, to September 1, 2023.
According to him, this will ensure adherence to the 90 days’ minimum advance notice for tax changes as contained in the country’s 2017 National Tax Policy (NTP).
The president also signed the Customs, Excise Tariff (Variation) Amendment Order, 2023 that shifted the commencement date of the tax changes from March 27, 2023, to August 1, 2023, in line with the NTP.
Alake disclosed that Tinubu also ordered the suspension of the newly introduced Green Tax on Single Use Plastics (SUPs), including plastic containers and bottles.
He added that the president also ordered the suspension of the Import Tax Adjustment levy on certain vehicles.
Alake said the president’s action is to ameliorate the negative impact of recent tax adjustments on businesses and the chokehold on households.
He said the president is committed to reviewing complaints around multiple taxation, local and anti-business inhibitions.
He assured that the Tinubu administration will continue to give requisite stimulus by way of friendly policies, to allow businesses to flourish.
He said the president assures Nigerians that there will be no further tax increase without robust and wide consultations within the context of a coherent fiscal policy framework.