The Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting, presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday approved the 2020 Finance Bill, to support the 2021 Budget.
Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs Zainab Ahmed, who disclosed this to State House Correspondents after the meeting, explained that the Bill is designed to bring about incremental changes in the nation’s tax laws.
Ahmed, who briefed correspondents alongside some of her colleagues, however, assured that the passage of the Bill into law would not lead to an increase in taxes in the country.
Explaining features of the Bill, the Minister said the intent of it is to ease tax burdens on some categories of enterprises, especially small and medium enterprises.
She also pointed out that some taxes had already been reduced saying: “In the last 2019 Finance Bill, we reduced taxes from 30 per cent to 20 per cent for enterprises that have a turnover of between N25 to N100 million.”
The Minister assured that the situation in the country does not warrant an increase in taxes, saying: “This is not the time to increase taxes.”
The Bill will soon be transmitted to the National Assembly for its consideration and passage into law.
