In an effort to ease the financial burden on Nigerian the Federal Government has decided to scrap the 5% excise duty tax previously imposed on telecommunications services, including voice calls and data usage.

The National Orientation Agency made this known in a post via its official X (formerly Twitter) page yesterday. The post said the Executive Vice Chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Dr. Aminu Maida, disclosed that President Bola Tinubu ordered the removal of the tax during discussions on the recently passed Finance Act.

The NCC boss noted that the move is expected to ease cost pressures for millions of mobile users in the country. Maida added that the President’s intervention was aimed at preventing additional financial strain on citizens while supporting the digital economy.

“The development is expected to bring relief to over 171 million active telecom users across the country, many of whom have faced a 50% tariff increase implemented earlier this year,” he added. The tax, which applies to both voice calls and data subscriptions, was introduced under the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari.

The 5% excise duty was first announced in 2022 and faced widespread criticism from both telecom operators and consumer rights groups, who warned it would worsen the financial burden on Nigerians amid rising living costs.

The government’s justification then was part of its effort to boost revenue generation amidst dwindling oil earnings. The Ministry of Finance at the time argued that the levy was in line with global taxation practices.

Telecom operators, under the umbrella of the Association of Licensed Telecom Operators of Nigeria (ALTON), however, warned that the policy would be counterproductive. The ALTON noted that Nigeria already had one of the highest tax burdens on the telecommunications sector in sub-Saharan Africa.