Nigerian tax, explained like a friend would.
The new tax law started on 1 January 2026. Tell us what you do, and we'll show you what applies to you, roughly what you owe, and what isn't taxed at all. Free, private, no sign-up: nothing you type leaves your phone.
What do you do? Pick all that apply.
Pick one or more to see your tax card.
How much tax should I pay?
An estimate of personal income tax for 2026. Use whole naira amounts.
Enter your income to see your estimate.
Cups is Tereka's free salary planner. It opens with your salary filled in; nothing is saved until you choose.
How the tax stairs work
Each step is taxed at its own rate. Only the part of your income on a step pays that step's rate.
What lowered your tax
Is my payslip right?
Copy three numbers from this month's payslip. We check the PAYE against the 2026 law. Nothing leaves your phone.
Fill in gross pay, pension and PAYE to see the check.
Which of my bills carry tax?
Tap a bill. "No VAT" makes things cheaper at the till; it doesn't change your income tax. Only rent you pay also lowers your income tax.
- No VAT or 0% VAT
- Also lowers your income tax
- Still charged
- Not settled: check
Money that isn't taxed at all
These don't count as taxable income or gains. Source: Nigeria Tax Act 2025, section 163, unless noted.
- Your first ₦800,000 a year
Taxed at 0% for everyone (Fourth Schedule). - Minimum wage
If your salary is ₦70,000 a month or less, no income tax on it. - Gifts you receive
Not taxed. Inheritance follows different rules. - Pension and gratuity
Paid under the Pension Reform Act: not taxed. - Compensation for losing your job
The first ₦50 million is not taxed. - Selling your own home
The home you live in, with up to one acre of land, once in your lifetime. - Selling your cars
Up to two private cars a year. - Selling personal items
Worth ₦5 million or less. - Farming businesses
Crop, livestock and dairy: first five years.
Is my company "small"?
For registered companies (Ltd). A business in your own name pays personal income tax on its profit instead: use the calculator above.
Enter your company's sales to check.
Freelancers and dollar earners
If you live in Nigeria, what foreign clients pay you is taxed here, the same way as naira income. There is no separate "dollar tax".
Count it in naira
Turn each payment into naira at the rate on the day you received it, and keep the bank or app record that shows it.
Take off your costs
Costs spent only to do the work come off first: data, software, a laptop, the work share of power. No receipt, no deduction.
Same steps as everyone
What is left is taxed on the same steps as a salary, with the first ₦800,000 at 0%. Rent relief applies to you too.
You file it yourself
No employer deducts it, so you file a yearly return with your state, usually by 31 March. Gains from selling crypto count as income too.
Things people are saying, checked
Your Tax ID is probably your NIN
Since 2026, banks, insurers, pension and investment firms ask people who earn an income for a Tax ID. For most people it is a number they already have.
- People: your National Identification Number (NIN) works as your Tax ID. It is free, and there is no card to collect.
- Companies and registered businesses: the CAC registration (RC) number is used.
- Had a TIN before? It still works. You do not need to register again.
- No income? If you earn nothing at all, you are not a taxpayer and do not need one.
Who to pay, and when
Everyone
Get a Tax ID. Every taxpayer and business needs one, even if you owe nothing. You must also file a return when you owe nothing: late filing costs ₦100,000 for the first month and ₦50,000 for each month after.
People
You pay your state's tax office where you live (for example LIRS in Lagos, FCT-IRS in Abuja). With a salary, your employer deducts it monthly (PAYE). Self-employed people file a yearly return, usually by 31 March: confirm the date with your state.
Companies
Companies pay the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS), which replaced FIRS. Returns are usually due within six months of the end of the company's financial year: confirm with NRS.
Not settled yet
Where the law or the official guidance isn't clear, we say so instead of guessing:
- Government material says gross income up to about ₦1.2 million is tax-free, which assumes typical deductions. Our calculator applies the bands after the deductions you enter.
- How the minimum-wage exemption is applied when someone has more than one income.
- Whether medical bills can be subtracted from income. Some firms say yes; we haven't confirmed it in the Act, so the calculator leaves it out.
- Electricity, data, airtime and bank fees are not on the relief lists we found, so they most likely still carry 7.5% VAT.
- Filing dates under the new Tax Administration Act: we show the usual dates, but confirm with your tax office.
Where this comes from
Built from the Nigeria Tax Act 2025 and the Nigeria Tax Administration Act 2025, cross-checked against independent summaries, and tested against a published worked example. The "old rules" comparison uses the Personal Income Tax Act as amended to 2020 (consolidated relief, old bands, 1% minimum tax) and is approximate. Last checked …. This is a free explainer, not tax advice: for anything important, confirm with your tax office or a tax professional.
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