The Lagos State Division of the TTax Tribunal Orders MTN Nigeria Communications to pay $72,551,059 in tax default to the Federal Inland Revenue Services (FIRS). This financial penalty covers a period spanning from 2007 to 2017, marking a pivotal development in the ongoing tax dispute.
A five-member panel, led by Professor A. B. Hamed, delivered the verdict on Friday as part of the judgment in appeal number TAT/LZ/VAT/075. The telecommunication company had appealed against the FIRS’s request to settle the tax default, and the panel’s decision brings clarity to the long-standing dispute.
In a comprehensive legal analysis, Tax Tribunal Orders MTN from paying a separate sum of $21,039,807, which constituted penalties and interest on the principal tax amount. The other members of the panel included P. A. Olayemi, Babatunde Sobamowo, Samuel N. Ohwerhoye, and Terzungwe Gbakighir.
The case’s origins can be traced back to May 10, 2018, when the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation conducted an investigation into MTN’s Forms A and M transactions spanning the accounting years from 2007 to 2017. An amended report in August 2018 adjusted the alleged outstanding amounts related to import duty and VAT.
Subsequently, in mid-2020, the FIRS informed MTN about the alleged tax liability to VAT and Withholding Tax (WHT). MTN, in collaboration with its tax consultant, KPMG Advisory Services, engaged in a series of meetings with the FIRS to resolve the tax dispute stemming from these allegations.
By July 2021, the FIRS issued a VAT assessment totaling $93,590,366 to MTN. This assessment incorporated the principal liability of $72,551,059 and an additional $21,039,807 in penalties and interest on the principal amount.
MTN contested the initial assessment, prompting the FIRS to review and issue a revised assessment of $135,697,755 in April 2022. The principal tax liability in the revised assessment was $47,776,210, less than the original assessment. However, the interest and penalty imposed in the revised assessment, amounting to $87.9 million, exceeded the penalties imposed in the first assessment.
MTN formally objected to the revised assessment, but the FIRS refused to amend it, leading to MTN’s appeal before the Tax Appeal Tribunal.
The tribunal, after careful deliberation, identified five key issues for determination. It ruled in favor of the FIRS on issues one to four, concluding that software licensing, bandwidth leases, investigation duration, and offshore training were subject to VAT. However, it resolved the fifth issue in favor of MTN, setting aside penalties and interest on the alleged non-remittance of VAT liabilities.
The decision marks a pivotal moment in this protracted tax dispute and will have significant implications for MTN Nigeria Communications and its tax obligations. The company is now ordered to settle the assessed tax liabilities without the previously imposed penalties and interest.
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