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By Akeem Atoyebi
The Federal Executive Council is looking in the direction of an amendment to the National Identity Management Commission Act No. 23, 2007 to give room for foreigners living in the country to be issued the National Identification Number.
The FEC, on Wednesday, also suggested the Economy Stabilisation Bill to pave the way for the taxing of foreigners living and working in Nigeria.
The two proposed legislation are aimed to “expand the scope of registrable persons to include foreign individuals with the taxable presence or taxable source of income in Nigeria, and make provisions for the mandatory use of National Identification Number for transactions which are relevant for tax administration, and for related matters.”
The government proposes a new paragraph to Section 16, which reads, “Any person, whether or not he is a citizen of Nigeria, who is deemed to be resident or otherwise subject to tax in Nigeria under any legislation in force in Nigeria.”
If passed into law, the new bill would see expatriates and income-earning immigrants being taxed.
The Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Mr. Bayo Onanuga, revealed this while briefing State House Correspondents at the Aso Rock Villa, Abuja, on Wednesday.
Onanuga explained that, “If the National Assembly passes that bill, it provides that everybody living in Nigeria, including foreigners, will now be registered and given NIN.
“Once you are doing some work here and earning income, you will be registered and given an NIN so that you can be taxed.
“Your NIN will give you your tax identity, and you can also be taxed and come under our tax structure. The law that set up the NIMC initially precludes foreigners from being registered.”
The presidential aide announced a third bill seeking to amend the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency Act No.17, 2007, to “provide for the payment of fees and other charges in naira to improve the ease of doing business and for related matters.”
It amends Section 15 by adding a new subsection (2), which says, “All fees, charges, levies, fines and other monies accruing and payable to the Agency under this Act may be paid in Naira at the applicable official exchange rate.”
Onanuga explained, “Hitherto, these agencies were charging in dollars, but now they can always collect it in Naira. This government wants to put a lot of emphasis on our national currency instead of everything being dollarised in our economy. The government is now saying, ‘pay in Naira.
