Nigeria’s tech sector has spent the past decade sprinting ahead of regulation. Start-ups raised a record 1.3 billion dollars in disclosed venture funding last year; talent hubs in Lagos and Abuja went fully remote, and dollar-denominated ARR became the new badge of honour. Yet while founders pursued blitz-scale growth, the tax code remained a patchwork of exemptions, waivers and colonial-era statutes written for brick-and-mortar commerce.
That dissonance just ended.
On 26 June 2025, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu assented to the four-part Tax Reform package:
- The Nigeria Tax Act (NTA)
- The Nigeria Tax Administration Act (NTAA)
- The Nigeria Revenue Service Act (NRSA)
- The Joint Revenue Board Act (JRBA)
Collectively branded “the Acts,” they represent the most sweeping overhaul since VAT’s debut in 1993. Although the effective date is unlikely to arrive before 1 January 2026, every founder now has six short months to adapt business models, funding plans and HR policies.
Seven reform headlines every founder must internalise
- Higher corporate exemption threshold: Turnover below ₦250 million now falls completely outside Companies Income Tax, Capital Gains Tax and the new Development Levy. Pre-Series-A SaaS teams gain a longer tax holiday, but the first naira above the line pushes you straight into full compliance.
- Capital Gains Tax triples to 30 percent: Secondary share sales, option exercises and investor exits will attract a far steeper Capital Gains Tax (CGT). Any founder liquidity taken before January may be taxed at ten percent; wait until 2026 and you could pay three times as much.
- Development Levy of four percent on profits
Once profitable, you will pay this levy in addition to CIT. For high-margin software businesses that is material. Bake the levy into pricing models now, not after term-sheets close. - Minimum Effective Tax Rate for multinationals—what it really means
Nigeria is joining the global push for a fifteen-percent floor on corporate tax. If your parent company is headquartered abroad and Nigerian subsidiaries pay an effective rate below fifteen percent, the parent must remit a “top-up” to meet the gap.
- Cross-border royalties and transfer pricing. Inter-company licence fees that shift profit offshore will be scrutinised; excessive payments could trigger adjustments.
- Profit-shifting limits. Moving cloud revenue to a Delaware or Dublin vehicle while booking only bare-bones reseller margins in Lagos may no longer wash.
- Compliance timeline. The NTAA obliges Nigerian entities to produce country-by-country reports within twelve months of the close of the financial year, so start gathering data in Q1 2026.
- Action point. Run scenario models under fifteen-, eighteen- and twenty-five-percent effective rates to know exactly where the squeeze begins and how much headroom remains for management fees or R&D cost-sharing
- Controlled Foreign Company rules revived
Profits retained in an offshore entity controlled by Nigerian residents can now be taxed in Nigeria. Holding IP in Mauritius or Delaware will invite questions and mandatory transfer-pricing files. - Mandatory VAT e-invoicing
Every outward or incoming invoice must flow through the new e-invoice portal. Manual PDFs sent from Gmail will break compliance. Build an API link or outsource to an ERP integrator before the deadline. - Zero-rated VAT on key digital inputs
The Acts expand the zero-rate list to include educational software, certain medical tech and software exports. Input VAT on AWS or Azure can now be reclaimed if invoices are documented correctly a welcome cash-flow boost.
Your team’s payslips will change
- Progressive Personal Income Tax bands shift upward. Annual income up to ₦8 million is now exempt; the highest marginal rate rises to twenty-five percent. Junior engineers may see bigger take-home pay, while senior staff face slightly higher withholding.
- Residency clarified for remote workers. Anyone who spends significant time in Nigeria or performs duties for a Nigerian entity is now clearly inside PAYE. Create a residency checklist and update payroll logic.
- Stock options and RSUs become pricier. Exercise events after January could suffer thirty-percent Capital Gains Tax on the gain, plus PAYE if treated as employment income. Revisit vesting schedules and consider early-exercise windows in 2025.
- Fringe-benefit valuation tightens. Employer-provided internet, devices and rent allowances must be priced at market value for tax. Either gross-up salaries or shift perks to reimbursable expense models.
How investors and future raises are affected
- Deeper due diligence. Venture funds will insist on a Tax Risk Register and proof of e-invoicing readiness. A messy ledger will depress valuation faster than churn metrics.
- Secondary liquidity windows narrow. Angels who cash out in 2026 face thirty-percent Capital Gains Tax, making early secondary rounds less attractive.
- Cross-border exits face new tolls. Selling a Cayman hold-co that owns a Nigerian subsidiary now triggers Capital Gains Tax on the indirect transfer of local assets. Term-sheets must account for Nigeria’s cut.
- Convertible instruments may cost more. Imputed interest on SAFEs and convertibles could fall into the Development Levy base, nudging investors toward straight equity.
Six practical steps before 1 January 2026 – plus one that ties everything together
- Map every revenue stream and cost centre to the new tax codes.
Build a granular model so you can see Companies Income Tax, Development Levy, VAT and withholding obligations line by line. - Integrate e-invoice APIs well ahead of go-live.
Manual PDFs will break compliance once the NTAA portal switches on. Automate now or outsource to an ERP integrator. - Reprice vendor contracts and claim input VAT where eligible.
Push back on suppliers who pass the levy straight through without evidence and start reclaiming VAT on zero-rated cloud, educational or medical tech inputs. - Restructure equity incentives to manage Capital Gains Tax exposure.
Early-exercise windows, holding-company trusts or refreshed valuation reports can soften the jump from 10 percent to 30 percent CGT. - Update pitch decks with new tax run-rate assumptions.
Investors will bake the four-percent Development Levy and higher CGT into their models; show you have done the math. - Train finance, product, HR and ops; everyone owns compliance now.
Finance updates filing calendars, product builds tax fields into checkout, HR rewrites offers, ops checks e-invoice flows. - Engage a tech-savvy tax consultant early.
A specialist who understands SaaS revenue recognition, transfer pricing and option-plan mechanics will help you translate the Acts into action items, validate your models and defend positions during FIRS reviews.
Final thought
I have applied the analytical lens of my economics first degree to map out these headline risks and opportunities. The Acts are only the opening volley; creative tax solutions will emerge as professional advisers unpack the fine print. We will publish follow-up notes once specialists surface optimisation pathways. Tackle the basics today, stay agile for refinements tomorrow and your startup will greet 2026 focused on shipping code, not firefighting audits.
This article was rewritten with the aid of AI
At Techsoma, we embrace AI and understand our role in providing context, driving narrative and changing culture.
