Eighteen companies remitted N330.9 billion to revenue agencies in the first half of 2022, OduNews reports.
This indicates a 35% increase when compared to the N245.18 billion reported in the first half of 2021.
By law, companies operating in Nigeria remits Corporate Income Tax (CIT), Education tax, National Information Technology Development Agency tax (NITDA), and Nigeria Police Trust Fund levy.
In Nigeria, the 30 per cent CIT is a tax collected from companies and the amount is based on the net income a company generated while exercising its business activity.
Revenues from these companies are an important source of income for the federal, state and local governments where these companies operate.
According to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), a total of N532.48 billion was remitted as CIT for first quarter (Q1) 2022, a growth rate of 53.09 per cent on a quarter-on-quarter basis from N347.81billion in the fourth (Q4) 2021.
As posted on the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX), Dangote Cement Plc, followed by MTN Nigeria Plc, Seplat Petroleum Plc and Ecobank Transnational Incorporated (ETI) led others in tax remittance to governments where they operate.
Zenith Bank Plc, United Bank for Africa Plc, among others are yet to release audited financial half-year financial statements for the period ended June 30, 2022 to investing public.
The breakdown showed that Dangote Cement reported N92.79billion tax expenses in H1 2022, an increase of 3.5 per cent from N89.6billion reported in H1 2021, while MTN Nigeria’s announced about 18.7 per cent increase in tax expenses to N87.01billion in H1 2022 from N73.3billion reported in H1 2021.
The CEO, MTN Nigeria, Karl Toriola in a statement explained that tax paid was on investments in government securities following the expiration of the 10-year tax exemption period, and the education tax rate increased to 2.5 per cent.
However, Seplat petroleum reported N51.85billion tax expenses in H1 2022 from N10.12billion reported in H1 2021, while Totalenergies Marketing Nigeria reported N4.2billion tax expenses in H1 2022, representing an increase of 13.22 per cent from N3.71billion reported in H1 2022.
In the banking sector, ETI reported N13.75billion tax expenses in Q1 2022 from N10.34billion in Q1 2021, as FBN Holdings in its unaudited financial statement announced N9.12billion tax expenses in H1 2022 from N7.15billion reported in H1 2021.