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Succour for Importers as FG Halts Vehicle Import Tax Levy
By Adedapo Adesanya
President Bola Tinubu has ordered the suspension of the Import Tax Adjustment levy on certain vehicles in the country, a move that will provide a breath of fresh air for vehicle importers.
This was one of four executive orders signed into law to curb burdensome taxation policy, according to the Special Adviser, Special Duties, Communication and Strategy, to the President, Mr Dele Alake, on Thursday.
Among the Executive Orders signed into law by the President includes the change in the date of the implementation of the Finance Act, 2023.
The President also deferred the commencement date of the changes contained in the Act from May 23, 2023, to September 1, 2023.
This is to ensure adherence to the 90 days minimum advance notice for tax changes as contained in the 2017 National Tax Policy.
Business Post had recently spoken to some vehicle importers, who worried that the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) had increased the exchange rate for cargo clearing at the port from N422.30/$ to N589.45/$, as verified on the customs official website.
This newspaper also saw a list of car clearing costs as a result of the rise in the exchange rate. This provided an insight that car importers going forward will be paying more as import duty tariff following the addition of close to 40 per cent.
This will be in addition to other clearing costs, including Value Added Tax (VAT), surcharge, ECOWAS Tax Liberalization Scheme (ETL), terminal charges, shipping charges, and clearing charges to Customs Licensed Agents.
Normally, an importer of the vehicle is meant to pay 20 per cent import duty and 20 per cent levy, amounting to 40 per cent of the total value of the vehicle, but with the jump in the exchange rate, there will be a need for many to adjust their car values.
By our calculations, this meant a car that used to clear for N4.2 million would suddenly jump close to N6 million.
One of the vehicle importers, who requested to be identified simply as Micheal from ID Autos in the Egbeda area of Alimosho Local Government, Lagos, said that the company was aware of the expected hike but had gotten an in-house directive to hold on to clearing their cargoes just yet.
Now, this latest move by the President will provide succour to many already battling a hike in the cost of fuel, electricity tariffs, and other basic amenities.
The spokesperson noted that “You will all recall that prior to the advent of this administration, certain tax changes were introduced via the Customs, Excise Tariff (Variation) Amendment Order, 2023 (henceforth referred to as “the Order”) published on the 8th of May 2023 and the Finance Act, 2023, which was signed into law on the 28th of May 2023.
“Among others, the Order introduced new Excise Duty on Single Use Plastics (SUPs), higher Excise Duties on some locally manufactured products, including alcoholic beverages and tobacco products, and Green Tax by way of Import Tax Adjustment on certain categories of imported vehicles.
“The Tinubu Administration has since noticed that some of the tax policies are being implemented retroactively with their commencement dates, in some instances, pre-dating the official publication of the relevant legal instruments backing the policies. This lacuna has created some challenges of implementation.”
He noted that the reasons behind upward adjustments of some of the taxes were designed to raise revenue as well as address environmental and public health concerns.
However, they have generated some significant challenges for affected businesses and elicited serious complaints amongst key stakeholders and in the business community.
“Let me mention some of the problems we have identified with the aforementioned tax changes. A document known as the 2017 National Tax Policy approved by the Federal Executive Council of the last administration prescribes a minimum of 90 days’ notice from the government to tax-payers entities before any tax changes can take effect.
“This global practice is done with a view to giving taxpayers and businesses reasonable time to adjust to the new tax regime. However, evidencing part of the gaps pointed out earlier, both the Finance Act 2023 and the Customs Excise Tariff Order 2023 did not give the required minimum notice period, thus putting businesses in violation of the new tax regime even before the changes were gazetted,” he added.
Mr Alake also explained that as a result of this, many of the affected businesses are already contending with the rising costs, falling margins and capacity underutilization due to the various macroeconomic headwinds as well as the impact of the Naira redesign policy.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The 2025 edition of the Art of Technology (AOT) Lagos is going to be bigger and better with the inclusion of inDrive as its official sponsor.
The AOT Lagos 7.0, themed Future Technologies and a Sustainable Lagos, is scheduled for Thursday, December 4, 2025, at the Landmark Centre, Lagos.
inDrive, a leading global ride-hailing platform operating in nine African countries, is partnering with the Lagos State government to bring together policymakers, innovators, tech founders, investors, and global industry leaders to shape the future of technology and digital transformation in Lagos.
Through this collaboration, inDrive aims to contribute to high-level conversations on driver empowerment, sustainable transport models, safety, and affordability, key challenges affecting millions of daily commuters and mobility service providers in the state.
According to the Country Representative of inDrive Nigeria, Mr Timothy Oladimeji, the sponsorship underscores the company’s deep commitment to advancing equitable mobility systems and supporting conversations that drive long-term impact across the transportation ecosystem.
He noted that inDrive sees AOT Lagos as a critical platform for addressing mobility challenges and accelerating innovation within the state.
During the event, inDrive will be participating in one of the key sessions, discussing the topic From fuel to future: the rise of e-mobility in Lagos.
Aside from this, inDrive will also be hosting a side workshop themed The Market Share Victory – How inDrive Became Nigeria’s Second-Largest Ride-Hailing Player.
“We are proud to sponsor AOT Lagos 7.0 because it aligns perfectly with our vision to democratise mobility and ensure fairness for both drivers and riders.
“As Lagos moves toward a smarter, more sustainable mobility future, inDrive is committed to supporting solutions that prioritise affordability, safety, driver empowerment, and technological readiness.
“Through this partnership, we hope to contribute meaningfully to shaping policies and ideas that will redefine how millions of people move across the state,” he said.
Now in its seventh edition, AOT Lagos has evolved into a premier platform for advancing smart-city innovation, showcasing emerging technologies, and influencing the policy frameworks that shape the digital economy in Africa’s largest city.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The federal government is set to open Section 1 of the 700 km Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway for public use from December 12 to 17, 2025.
The Minister of Works, Mr Dave Umahi, gave the assurance on Sunday in Lagos during a review of outstanding works on Section 1 of the highway project.
The section 1 is 47.47km long and has six lanes and two carriageways.
Mr Umahi said: “We also set aside April next year to have Section 1 and half of Section 2 fully completed and commissioned,” adding that the contractor handling the project, Hitech Construction Company Limited, had achieved more than 80 per cent of the reinforced concrete pavement.
“We are very grateful to God Almighty for his mercies, and to the President and to the contractor.
“If we are to pay for everything they have done, it will be very difficult to have this job done because there are places we didn’t envisage that we were going to be removing pits up to a depth of 20 metres.
“They had to do that because they are partners in progress for the development of the country.
“We have just about three kilometres to complete the entire sand filling from Ahmadu Bello Way to Eleko Junction, and we are excited at the work and the quality of what has been done,” the former Governor of Ebonyi State, said.
The new Controller of Works in Lagos, Mr Olufemi Dare, told the minister that a lot of settling was ongoing at Chainage 33 of the highway project, praising the contractor for high quality of work.
“Sir, it may interest you to know that the building standing is the palace of this community, and you saved this building, and they are extremely happy,” he said.
On his part, the Managing Director of Hitech Construction Company Limited, Mr Dany Abboud, said that the company would still backfill from Chainage 34 to Chainage 37.
“Dredging is ongoing, we are on track to deliver.
“We are monitoring the settlement in the swampy areas and the water body areas due to the change of alignment,” he said.
The highway, which commenced construction in March 2024, has generated a lot of controversy, with critics raising concern around cost and procurement structure.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
A Nigerian lender has been accused of frustrating local business owners by not financing Made-in-Nigeria vehicles but promoting the purchase of foreign vehicles.
This allegation was made by the owner of a local vehicle assembly firm, Nord Motion, Mr Oluwatobi Ajayi, in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.
He described this as an economic sabotage, stressing that this action does not encourage local investors.
“A business owner in the oil and gas sector approached us that he would like to buy two units of the @nordmotion Max pickup for his company. Apparently, he was impressed with the vehicle after some rides with his peers in the sector.
“To my shock, yesterday, my team told me that the bank, a bank operating in Nigeria told him that they do not finance Made-in-Nigeria vehicles, and they even suggested to our customer that he should go for foreign brands instead.
“The most provocative part of this is that all of the brands they suggested to him identified as Made-in-Nigeria brands in their filings with the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP), which means they decide who they want to be whenever it suits them.
“This is yet another example of the needless sabotage and institutional bias against Nigerian manufacturers and assemblers that we experience in this sector.
“The President aims to grow us into a $1 trillion economy. Nigerians want to buy Made-in-Nigeria products, we are working very hard to produce world-class vehicles, but some banks, who should play the role of credit facilitators, are displaying open prejudice against locally made vehicles.
“What sort of economic sabotage is this?
“Many of us who continue to assemble and manufacture vehicles here do so not just for profit, but out of patriotism and belief in the long game. We see this as a marathon, not a sprint.
“We cannot continue using Nigerian resources to strengthen foreign factories while starving our own indigenous companies of opportunities.
“If we truly want this country to be better, then we must support goods and services made in Nigeria, especially those of us who have shown we can deliver world-class standards. The support has to be real, not just in words, but in policy, in finance, and in action.
“Every time we deny support for local production, we export jobs, skills, and economic growth that should belong here,” he narrated.
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