Nigeria’s new tax laws introduced a harmonised taxpayer identification system under the Nigeria Tax Administration Act, 2025 (NTAA).
Under Section 4 of the Act, every taxable person is required to register with the relevant tax authority and obtain a Taxpayer Identification (“Tax ID”) for the purpose of complying with tax obligations.
The Nigerian Tax ID Portal became operational on 1 January 2026, jointly administered by the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS)and theJoint Revenue Board (JRB).
The system is designed to harmonise taxpayer identification across federal and state tax administration and provide each taxpayer with a single recognised tax identity.
What is the Tax ID?
The Tax ID is a unique, system-generated identifier assigned to a taxpayer for tax administration, compliance and enforcement.
It is linked to an already recognised foundational identity.
For individuals, the Tax ID is linked principally to the person’s National Identification Number (NIN).
For companies, business names, partnerships, incorporated trustees and other CAC-registered entities, it is linked to the entity’s Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) registration record.
Other recognised identity records may apply to non-residents and special categories of taxpayers.
The Tax ID currently generated through the national Tax ID system is a 13-digit identifier.
The significance of this linkage is simple: rather than creating multiple unrelated taxpayer identities, the Tax ID connects the taxpayer’s tax record to an already verified legal identity.
How is Tax ID different from the old TIN?
Before the new tax regime, taxpayers were generally identified using Tax Identification Numbers (TINs) issued under the former FIRS/JTB framework, while state tax authorities also maintained taxpayer identification systems for individuals within their jurisdictions.
The new Taxpayer Identification (Tax ID)) regime is intended to harmonise these fragmented taxpayer records into a single national taxpayer identity.
The law reinforces this principle by providing that a taxable person who already has a valid Tax ID must not apply for or be issued another Tax ID. Where multiple Tax IDs are discovered, they are to be reported to the relevant tax authority for unification.
The NRS has also expressly confirmed in the e-Invoicing system that Tax ID replaces TIN as the legal identifier for e-Invoicing.
The practical message is therefore:
One taxpayer. One Tax ID.
Who is required to have a Tax ID?
The requirement is not limited to companies.
Under the NTAA, every taxable person must register and obtain a Tax ID. This includes individuals earning taxable income or carrying on taxable activities, companies, businesses, partnerships and other organisations with tax obligations in Nigeria.
Federal and State ministries, departments and agencies, as well as Local Governments, are also required to register and obtain Tax IDs.
A non-resident person supplying taxable goods or services to persons in Nigeria or deriving income from Nigeria is also generally required to register and obtain a Tax ID.
The Act provides an exception or modified treatment for certain non-residents deriving only passive investment income.
It is therefore more accurate to say that every taxable person requires a Tax ID, rather than that every Nigerian automatically requires one merely by reason of citizenship.
Where will the Tax ID be required?
This is perhaps the most important practical aspect of the new system.
Under Section 8 of the NTAA, the Tax ID must be stated on:
- tax returns, notices, correspondence and other documents used for tax compliance;
- documents prepared, produced, issued or submitted in respect of a transaction; and
- documentation relating to contracts with Federal or State ministries, departments or agencies and Local Governments.
In practical business terms, this means Tax ID will increasingly appear on invoices, contracts, supplier documentation, customer records, tax filings and other transaction documents.
The law goes further in relation to financial services. Banks, insurance companies, stockbrokers and other financial service providers are required to make provision of a Tax ID a precondition for opening or operating an account for a taxable person.
Tax ID is also becoming the common identifier across NRS digital tax systems, including tax registration, filing, e-Invoicing and other compliance processes.
Businesses should therefore begin reviewing their invoice templates, accounting and ERP systems, vendor and customer onboarding forms, tax records, banking documentation and e-Invoicing configurationsto ensure that the correct Tax ID is captured.
How do you retrieve your Tax ID?
The process is relatively straightforward.
An individual can visit the official JRB or NRS Tax ID Portal, select Individual, provide his or her NIN and complete the required identity verification.
For CAC-registered organisations, the Corporate option allows the organisation to be identified using its CAC registration number or corporate record.
Once the information is verified against the relevant underlying government database, the taxpayer’s 13-digit Tax ID is displayed.
The official portals are:
Because the databases are integrated, the objective is that the Tax ID associated with a taxpayer remains the same identity irrespective of the government platform through which it is retrieved or verified.
For CAC-registered entities, the integration between CAC and the Tax Identity System also means that a Tax ID information prompt is now displayed alongside corporate registration information. The taxpayer can simply click the prompt to retrieve the Tax ID connected to that CAC record.
The important point is that Tax ID is not intended to create another independent identity. It is linked to the taxpayer’s recognised foundational record.
What if a taxpayer already had a TIN?
Having an old TIN does not mean that a taxpayer should seek to create another independent tax identity.
The new system is built around retrieval, linkage and harmonisation.
Taxpayers should therefore retrieve their Tax ID using their NIN, CAC registration information or other applicable recognised identity record and use the Tax ID going forward under the new regime.
Where multiple Tax IDs exist for the same taxable person, the Act specifically requires that the matter be reported to the relevant tax authority for unification.
What happens when a taxpayer’s details change?
Tax ID registration also carries continuing compliance obligations.
Under Section 9 of the NTAA, a taxable person must notify the relevant tax authority within 30 days of a change in specified particulars.
These changes include matters such as name or trading name, business location, telephone number, email address and registered address.
For companies and other organisations, relevant changes may also include changes involving significant shareholders, beneficial owners, trustees, beneficiaries or partners, as applicable.
Information relating to a sale, acquisition, takeover, merger or liquidation of a business may similarly need to be updated.
This makes consistency between CAC, NIN and tax recordsincreasingly important.
Can a Tax ID be suspended or deregistered?
Yes.
Where a taxable person temporarily ceases business, the person is required to notify the relevant tax authority within 30 days. The Tax ID may then be classified as dormant and placed on suspension.
Where the personpermanently ceases business, notification must also be made to enable deregistration.
The relevant tax authority may also deregister or cancel a Tax ID where, for example, an individual taxpayer dies, a body corporate is wound up or dissolved, or the taxpayer is found to have another Tax ID.
Importantly, where a taxpayer whose Tax ID was suspended later resumes business and reapplies, the Act provides that the same Tax IDshould be restored rather than a new one being created.
There are penalties for failure to register. The Tax ID requirement is not merely administrative.
Under Section 100 of the NTAA, a taxable person who fails or refuses to register for tax is liable to an administrative penalty of:
- ₦50,000 for the first month of default; and
- ₦25,000 for every subsequent month that the default continues.
There is also an important obligation on organisations dealing with suppliers and contractors.
A statutory body or company that awards a contract to an unregistered person is liable to an administrative penalty of ₦5,000,000.
This makes Tax ID verification increasingly important not only for taxpayers themselves but also for organisations managing vendors, contractors and suppliers.
What should individuals and businesses do now?
Taxpayers should retrieve and confirm their Tax IDs and ensure that their underlying NIN or CAC information is accurate.
Businesses should also review where legacy TINs are currently used and begin updating their systems and documentation to accommodate Tax ID – particularly invoices, tax filings, bank records, vendor and customer onboarding, contracts, ERP systems and e-Invoicing processes.
The new Tax ID is therefore more than a change in terminology.
It represents Nigeria’s move towards a single, verifiable and nationally recognised taxpayer identity across Federal and State tax administration.
One taxpayer. One identity. One Tax ID.