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FG lost N2.5tn on stamp duty in 2014 – NIPOST

By on February 5, 2016

The Federal Government lost over N2.5tn to the non-implementation of the Stamp Duty Act in the financial sector in 2014, the Nigerian Postal Service has said.

It said this in a document on the stamp duty, which was obtained by our correspondent in Abuja on Wednesday.

The postal service also disclosed that in order to ensure effective implementation of the Stamp Duty Act, which requires the fixing of N50 adhesive stamps on every document connected to a financial transaction, it had appointed 20 agents across the country.

Investigation by our correspondent showed that each agent would get 20 per cent of the value of the stamps it was able to dispose of in the process. For those deploying electronic stamping and franking machines, the percentage of the commission varies.

The document stated, “Over the years, NIPOST has been trying assiduously and working with relevant agencies of government to revive the Act, which if fully implemented, will not only turn the fortunes of NIPOST around, but also among other things, create employment opportunities for Nigerians.

“It has become another major source of generating revenue for the Federal Government. This position is reinforced by the outcome of an investigation carried out in conjunction with a consultant to NIPOST, which put a conservative estimate of N2.5tn as the loss to the country as a result of the failure of financial institutions to adhere to the implementation of the stamping Act in the year 2014; and that was in the financial institutions alone.

“The implication of this is that the implementation of the stamp duties has opened a new revenue drive, which is a relief to the Federal Government. It is gratifying and exciting to know that well over 20 private companies now partner NIPOST as stamp duty agents and more applications are still inbound.

“However, from the feedback gathered, these agents have faced stiff opposition, especially from regulatory bodies and coordinating agencies of government, which ought to direct such organs to comply with the provisions of the Act.”

The General Manager, Stamp Duties, Double Platinum Group, one of the agents working with NIPOST on the implementation of the Stamp Duty Act, Mr. Elekwa Enyinnaya, said it had been difficult to convince several organisations on the need to comply with the law.

He, however, said that the intervention of the Central Bank of Nigeria had brought the needed awareness to secure compliance across different sectors of the economy.
[Punch]