Nigeria’s long battle with multiple taxation may be turning a corner, if the early outcomes of the Joint Revenue Board’s reforms are sustained, the Sanity Multi-Effort Forum, SMEF, has said.
In a June 26, 2026 policy report, the civil society organisation argued that the JRB framework directly addresses the cost drivers it has documented for years across Nigeria’s transport and trade corridors.
The report, “From Multiple Taxation to One Nation,” frames the reforms as validation of SMEF’s mandate on economic sanity, accountability, and protection of commercial operators from illegal extortion.
SMEF pointed to four laws signed on June 26, 2025, as the foundation: the Joint Revenue Board Establishment Act, Nigeria Revenue Service Establishment Act, Nigeria Tax Act, and Nigeria Tax Administration Act.
Together, the laws create a single legal structure to coordinate how revenue is administered across federal, state, and local tiers, a gap SMEF says has enabled duplication and abuse.
The organisation particularly welcomed the JRB’s electronic-only collection mandate. By removing cash and unauthorised roadblocks, the directive targets what SMEF calls “roadblock economics” — the practice of repeated levies on drivers and traders outside the law.
SMEF has since issued guidance to transport unions and fleet operators: reject cash demands from unauthorised task forces and escalate such cases to the Legal Departments of State Internal Revenue Services.
A central element of the reform is the Model Harmonised Taxes and Levies Law, which collapses over 60 separate state and local charges into nine approved heads.
They are: Capital Gains Tax, Personal Income Tax, Property Tax, Road Tax, PAYE, Business Premises Levy, Harmonised Levy, Motor Vehicle Licence, and Daily Ticketing.
SMEF confirmed that over 15 states have domesticated the model. It is currently in consultations with the 36 State IRS and the FCT IRS to ensure compliance, while recognising only levies with clear legal backing.
The group said it has received written responses from Kebbi, Kwara, Zamfara, and Kaduna IRS, and expects wider alignment.
Another reform SMEF backed is the Consolidated Haulage Levy and Vehicle Tagging System 2026. Under it, haulage operators make one payment, at loading or offloading, and receive one digital receipt valid nationwide.
SMEF said the system should end multiple haulage charges across transit states, cut logistics costs, and reduce price pressures on consumers.
It also welcomed the rollout of over 100 million 13-digit Unified TINs and the JRB’s online PAYE calculator. The organisation will embed both tools in its nationwide training for drivers, SMEs, and transport unions to improve compliance literacy.
SMEF described its role as a bridge between government and citizens on revenue matters. Copies of its report and explanatory charts will be shared with state finance commissioners, IRS chairmen, FRSC, Police, VIO, and other agencies to support implementation.
Signing off the report, Convener Prince Dan Olaitan Dada said sustained coordination between government and civil society can reduce illegal revenue practices and create a more predictable environment for business.
