NRS: E-invoicing to strengthen tax compliance, tighten enforcement

The Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) has said the nationwide rollout of electronic invoicing (e-invoicing) will strengthen tax compliance, reduce revenue leakages and improve transparency in tax administration as the agency advances efforts to digitise the country’s tax system.

Project Lead of the NRS e-Invoicing Project, Mohammed Bawa, disclosed this yesterday at the DigiTax E-Invoicing Compliance Breakfast Session in Lagos, where tax officials and industry stakeholders discussed the implementation roadmap and compliance obligations under the new framework.

The event, organised by DigiTax, an NRS-accredited e-invoicing service provider, formed part of ongoing stakeholder engagement aimed at increasing awareness of the e-invoicing mandate and supporting taxpayer readiness.

Bawa said the initiative aligns with global tax digitisation practices and is expected to improve Nigeria’s tax administration by providing greater visibility into commercial transactions, reducing opportunities for revenue leakages and expanding compliance across the formal and informal sectors.

He explained that the platform will standardise invoice formats using internationally recognised invoice schemas, enabling more efficient verification of transactions while facilitating data exchange between taxpayers and the tax authority.

According to him, the system will also improve operational efficiency by replacing manual and fragmented electronic processes with automated system-to-system interactions, thereby enhancing compliance monitoring and reducing administrative burdens.

Bawa said implementation of the framework is supported by the Nigeria Tax Administration Act, which provides the legal basis for enforcement and prescribes sanctions for non-compliance.

He disclosed that the NRS has completed the onboarding of large taxpayers and is preparing to commence enforcement against entities that fail to comply with the requirements.

He said medium-sized taxpayers are expected to begin compliance in the third quarter of 2026, while the onboarding of emerging taxpayers is scheduled for 2027. Full adoption of the e-invoicing regime is targeted for the end of 2028.

Bawa urged taxpayers yet to join the platform to begin the onboarding process through accredited service providers to ensure compliance ahead of the enforcement deadlines.

Also speaking, Country Director of DigiTax Nigeria, Olumide Akinsola, advised businesses to extend their compliance assessments beyond internal systems to include suppliers and other trading partners.

He warned that businesses whose suppliers fail to transmit invoices through the mandated platform could lose eligibility to claim Value Added Tax (VAT) input credits on affected transactions, exposing organisations to avoidable tax and commercial risks across their supply chains.

Akinsola also unveiled DigiTax’s white paper, The State of E-Invoicing Readiness in Nigeria, which examines adoption trends and compliance preparedness among different taxpayer categories.

He said the company’s experience in Nigeria, Kenya, Zambia and the United Arab Emirates indicates that organisations that adopt e-invoicing early are better positioned to minimise operational disruptions and meet regulatory requirements once enforcement begins.