The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) is the agency of the Federal Government of Nigeria responsible for assessing, collecting and accounting for tax and other revenues accruable to the Federal Government and the Federation. The FIRS is responsible for the administration of Value Added Tax in Nigeria.
MATAN means Market Traders Association of Nigeria. It is the umbrella body for all trading associations in Nigeria and was founded in the year 1995. 3 MATAN is the largest player in Nigeria’s market space with a membership of well over 40 million traders across the country.
The FIRS is partnering with MATAN to collect and remit Value Added Tax (VAT) from their members-especially those in the informal sector-using a unified systems technology. This collaboration is known as the VAT Direct Initiative.
What is the VAT Direct Initiative (VDI)? It is a collaboration between the FIRS and MATAN where MATAN promotes awareness on VAT collection and remittance in the market place and informal sector, while also simplifying VAT payment and remittance for the market place and informal sector using a purpose-built digital platform.
MATAN has a digital platform which enumerates their members giving them a digital ID and tracks their turnover so that VAT accrued is collected and remitted to the FIRS.
The VAT Direct Initiative (VDI) is the first of its kind program that will utilize technology to foster collaboration between FIRS and the marketplace for the collection and remittance of VAT.
Through this initiative the FIRS will help tackle multiple taxation in the market place through partnership with security agencies to curb the activities of touts, miscreants and self-imposed tax collectors involved in illegal tax collection in Nigeria’s market spaces.
The VAT Direct Initiative (VDI) will boost VAT revenue generation for the three tiers of government, which in turn means more money to fund infrastructure, provide social amenities and cater for the welfare of citizens.
MATAN members will each receive an Identity Card upon enumeration. This card contains their Tax Identification Number (TIN) and other personal details for tax purposes.
The VAT Direct Initiative (VDI) will have a monitoring and evaluation team comprising of FIRS officers and MATAN members to ensure transparency, accountability, prompt VAT remittance, sustained commitment and reporting which are vital to build the public confidence in the initiative.