NIGERIA TARGETS TAX ON OFFSHORE ASSETS

The Federal Government of Nigeria, through executive order no 8 issued by President Buhari and gazzetted October 8, 2018, has set in motion a scheme to ensure Nigerians paid tax on their offshore  assets and income.

Called Voluntary Offshore Assets Regulation Scheme (VOARS), it was set in motion based on the premise that:
-Every citizen has duty to declare offshore income and assets and pay appropriate tax on them,
- That there is the need to inculcate in all citizens the ethics of voluntarily declaring income and assets, even of the offshore kind, and pay tax as appropriate.

The scheme is being set up in Switzerland for all categories of tax payers and under it, everyone has 12 months period starting from October 8, to voluntarily declare all offshore  incomes and assets dating back 30 years on which tax was supposed to be paid and was not paid or was underpaid 

Once the assets and incomes had been verified, the tax payer will then pay 35% as tax to cover all due since the asset was acquired or income earned.

Aside from this 35%, no other liability will be expected of him or her and no interest chargeable on backlog due.

However, for the asset and income to be accessed and verified, 2% access and verification fee will be paid and all tax payers will have to establish a nexus in Switzerland to cover all assets held any where in the world.

Once verification was completed and 35% due was paid, a clearance certificate will be issued which confers the following benefits:

- Immunity from comprehensive tax audit
- Waiver from interest charges on declared and regulated offshore assets
- Freedom to utilise such assets and income in Nigeria and any where else in the world.

Those eligible include:

- Persons, entities and intermediaries who are holding offshore assets or have offshore income on which they have defaulted on tax liabilities or under declared in the last 30 years.
- Persons already under investigation in Nigeria or any where else in the world for the same lapses:
-Those who earn income on offshore assets but are yet to declare such.
- Tax payers who have additional disclosure to make or need to amend prior disclosure or have not been filing returns as required by the law.
- Those who have been underpaying, under remitting or have not fully declared such offshore assets and incomes.

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