By Okwy lroegbu-Chikezie and Nduka Chiejina (Assist Editor), Abuja

The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) has bowed to pressure from companies and agreed to extend the deadline for the filing of Company Income Tax (CIT) returns to August 31, 2022.

The extension of this deadline is contained in a statement by the FIRS and signed by the tax authority’s Executive Chairman, Muhammad Nami.

Nami noted that the FIRS had taken this decision after receiving “numerous calls from companies for the extension of time to submit the Companies Income Tax (CIT) returns for 2022 year of assessment falling due on 30th June 2022”.

The statement stated that as “a measure of goodwill by the Service and in line with relevant provisions of the Companies Income Tax Act, it had directed that all Companies whose Companies Income Tax returns for 2022 Year Of Assessment, that falls due between 30th June and 31st August, 2022 (both days inclusive), were given up to 31st August, 2022 to submit their returns to the Service”.

It stated that the extension is a one-off gesture by the Service for only the 2022 Year of Assessment on Company Income Tax Returns and that companies who filed within this period of extension would not be subject to Late Filing Penalty or interest for late payment.

“The relevant Company Income Tax returns shall, therefore, not attract Late Filing Penalty or interest for late payment if submitted to the Service on or before 31st August 2022;

 Buhari welcomes berthing of first vessel at Lekki Deep Seaport

“Where relevant Company Income Tax returns are not filed by the extended date, penalty and interest for late payment shall be computed from the original due date and not the extended date;” the release read.

Mr. Nami, however, explained that the extension only applies to the filing of Companies Income Tax Returns but does not extend to other taxes.

Also, the Lagos State Internal Revenue Service (LIRS) is optimising its payment procedures for utmost efficiency and taxpayers’ convenience.

Its Executive Chairman, Mr Ayodele Subair, in a statement, said the agency, as part of its digitalisation, is discontinuing previous bill references from August 1, 2022.

Consequently, according to the Chairman, only the Enterprise Tax Solutions (eTax) generated bill references will be acceptable for tax payments.

The platform, which went live in October 2019, was launched by LIRS to engender seamless tax operations and reduce compliance costs to tax payers. Since then, eTax has improved the effectiveness of tax administration in Lagos State.

Mr Subair added that the eTax was built as a one-stop shop for tax transactions, and it is in the same spirit that the generation of bill references, required for all tax payments is now exclusive to the eTax platform.

He said by the cutoff date of August 1, eTax would become the only authorised channel to generate bill reference for tax payments and other tax-related transactions in Lagos State.

“This extension of filing date is only for CIT and does not include returns for withholding tax, value added tax, personal income tax (PAYE), etc.”

The Service called on taxpayers to take the opportunity of this extension to submit their Companies Income Tax Returns and pay their due taxes within the specified time of extension.