No Automatic Bank Debits Under 2026 Tax Reforms, Oyedele Assures Nigerians

The Chairman of the Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms, Mr Taiwo Oyedele, has assured Nigerians that the new tax laws taking effect on January 1, 2026, will not involve automatic deductions from personal bank accounts. The reforms, he explained, are based on self-declaration rather than direct debits.

Speaking on Channels Television’s end-of-year programme 2025 In Retrospect: Charting a Pathway to 2026, Oyedele dismissed claims that the government would monitor or debit individuals’ accounts. He stressed that taxpayers would only need to declare their income at the end of the tax year.

“People think that the government will debit their bank accounts from next year, and how they even came up with that, I have no idea. Nobody will debit your account for any amount you transfer. Whether it’s a billion or one thousand naira, at the end of the year, you tell the government yourself,” he said.

Oyedele further explained that the reform framework is designed to be simple, transparent, and fair, particularly for small business owners and individuals earning modest incomes.

“You know what constitutes your income and what doesn’t. So you tell the government: ‘This is my income and here is the tax.’ If you are exempted, you simply declare: ‘This is my income, and I am exempted from tax.’ It is a very simple process that we are simplifying further,” he said.

Highlighting the system’s progressive design, Oyedele added: “One of the biggest benefits is that if you run a small business as a sole proprietor, an enterprise, or you are just hustling, the system will no longer be regressive, taxing the vulnerable more. We’ve made it progressive.”

President Bola Tinubu reiterated that the implementation of the new tax laws – including those enacted on June 26, 2025, and those commencing on January 1, 2026 – would proceed as planned.

According to the President, the reforms represent “a once-in-a-generation opportunity to build a fair, competitive, and robust fiscal foundation” for the country. He emphasised that the laws are not intended to increase taxes but to support a structural reset, promote harmonisation, protect dignity, and strengthen the social contract.

Tinubu called on stakeholders to support the rollout of the reforms, which he said are now “firmly in the delivery stage,” noting that no substantial issues have been identified to warrant delays.