Tax Reform: Lagos Records 92% Growth In Individual Filings
Kehinde Adeleye
Lagos State recorded a 92 per cent increase in individual statutory annual tax filings between 2025 and 2026, the Lagos State Internal Revenue Service, LIRS, has said.
The agency also disclosed that corporate tax filings increased by 11 per cent within the same period.
The figures were revealed on Thursday at the 3rd edition of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s Organised Private Sector stakeholders’ forum on emerging tax matters in Lagos.
The forum, themed “New Tax Regime: Compliance Level and Emerging Tax Administration in Lagos State,” examined taxpayer compliance 6 months after the implementation of Nigeria’s new tax regime.
Representing the LIRS Executive Chairman, Dr Ayodele Subair, the Director of Tax Audit, Folusho Mustapha, said the increase in filings showed that the tax reforms were beginning to influence taxpayer behaviour in the state.
“Statutory annual filings between 2025 and 2026 recorded an 11 per cent growth in corporate filings and a significant 92 per cent growth in individual filings,” Mustapha said.
He added that Lagos recorded a 29 per cent increase in overall tax revenue collections in the 1st half of 2026 compared with the corresponding period in 2025.
According to him, Pay As You Earn, PAYE, collections increased by 36 per cent, while other revenue lines recorded a 15 per cent increase.
However, Mustapha said the emerging impact of the new tax regime suggested that a significant number of taxpayers could either stop paying tax or pay less under the new system.
He said 54 per cent of taxpayers who paid tax in the 2025 year of assessment had not, and were not expected to, pay in 2026, while 44 per cent were expected to pay less than they did in 2025.
Only about 2 per cent of the sampled taxpayers had started paying under the new regime and were expected to pay more than their 2025 tax liabilities, he added.
Mustapha said the figures showed the need for continued taxpayer education, targeted compliance measures and greater awareness of tax obligations and the consequences of non compliance.
Speaking at the forum, LCCI President, Leye Kupoluyi, said businesses wanted a tax system that was fair, predictable and efficient enough to support economic growth.
Kupoluyi acknowledged the government’s need to increase revenue but warned against repeatedly increasing the burden on businesses that were already paying their taxes.
He said expanding the tax base, improving compliance and reducing leakages would provide a more sustainable approach to increasing government revenue.
According to him, the success of the new tax regime should not be measured only by the amount of revenue collected, but also by whether compliance had become easier, the cost of compliance had reduced, the tax base had expanded and investor confidence had improved.
The new tax regime came into effect on January 1, 2026, following the introduction of 4 tax laws covering taxation, tax administration, the Nigeria Revenue Service and the Joint Revenue Board.
Kupoluyi said businesses needed greater certainty as they adjusted to the new framework, warning that frequent changes in tax rules, delayed regulations and differing interpretations could affect investment decisions.
He urged the government to broaden the tax base, simplify compliance, strengthen enforcement against tax evasion, reduce leakages and use technology more effectively.
Mustapha said LIRS would continue to strengthen its digital platforms, use data to identify compliance risks and improve services for taxpayers.
He added that the agency would focus on simplification, engagement and collaboration with the private sector as the new tax regime evolves.
“The ultimate success of the new tax regime will not be determined by legislation alone. It will be measured by how easy it is to comply, how fairly the system is administered, how effectively legitimate concerns are resolved and how much confidence taxpayers place in the system,” Mustapha said.
