Abuja makes N80.86b revenue, eyes N137b this year
By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
Electronic transfer tax generated N80.86 billion into the federal treasury in the first half of 2023 ending in June (H1 2023), according to data compiled by the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC).
The revenue rode on the surge in epayments that started with the COVID pandemic in 2020 and spread to the three months of chaos in the implementation of naira redesign policy which caused currency scarcity between December 2022 and March 2023.
Abuja introduced electronic money transfer levy (EMTL) as an additional source of revenue in the Finance Act 2020, which amended the Stamp Duty Act to tap into the growth of electronic funds transfer in Nigeria.
The levy is a one-off charge of N50 on N10,000 or above on electronic receipt or transfer of money deposited in any bank or financial institution on any type of account.
Since its introduction, EMTL has been a steady source of funds for the three tiers of government – federal, state, council – which share accruals into the Federation Account.
Revenue from the tax in H1 2023 is spread out as follows:
- January – N13.8 billion
- February – N11.65 billion
- March – N14.49 billion
- April – N15.12 billion
- May – N14.37 billion
- June – N11.44 billion
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e-payments in Nigeria rise 387%
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Fiscal Strategy Policy
In its 2023-2025 Medium Term Expenditure Framework and Fiscal Strategy Paper, the Budget Office hopes to make N137.03 billion from EMTL in 2023, N157.59 billion (2024), and N189.11 billion (2025), per The PUNCH.
“The Main Pool, VAT Pool, and Electronic Money Transfer Levy are projected at N4.89tn, N2.74tn, and N136.35bn, respectively, in 2023,” the document said.
The treasury made N111.84 billion from EMTL in 2021, according to the Budget Office.
Adoption of e-payment transactions has seen a steady growth since the outset of the pandemic in 2020.
Data on the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) portal shows the total value of electronic transactions was N108.42 trillion in 2019, N162.89 trillion (2020), N278.38 trillion (2021), and N395.47 trillion (2022).
The International Monetary Fund recently disclosed the value of mobile money transactions in Nigeria grew to 9.72 per cent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2020 because of the pandemic.
And Association of Mobile Money Agents in Nigeria (AMMAN) President, Victor Olojo, has predicted EMTL revenue will continue to rise for the foreseeable future.