The Office of the Tax Ombud (OTO) is set to unveil a Taxpayers’ Bill of Rights and Obligations within the next few weeks to equip taxpayers with a clear understanding of their rights and responsibilities under Nigeria’s new tax regime.

The Chief Executive Officer of the OTO, Dr. John Nwabueze, disclosed this on Thursday in Abuja at a stakeholders’ engagement themed “Promoting Fairness, Transparency and Trust in Tax Administration in Nigeria.”

Nwabueze said the charter would provide taxpayers with a clear understanding of their rights, responsibilities and the standards of fairness, transparency and accountability they should expect from tax and revenue authorities.
According to him, the Taxpayers’ Bill of Rights and Obligations would be made available through the OTO’s digital platforms and other public channels.

He urged tax and revenue authorities to support the initiative by disseminating the document through their offices and digital platforms.

“We believe this will strengthen taxpayer awareness, encourage voluntary compliance, prevent disputes and build greater trust across the tax ecosystem,” he said.

Nwabueze also disclosed that the OTO had commenced a structured programme of public awareness and stakeholder sensitisation aimed at improving understanding of the office’s mandate, services and the rights available to taxpayers.

He said the initiative was critical because an institution could only protect citizens’ rights effectively when they understood those rights and knew where and how to seek redress.
In a related development, the OTO is working to expand its physical presence across the country, with at least three zonal offices expected to commence operations within the next few weeks.

“Recognising that access to taxpayer protection should not be limited by geography, the OTO is working in partnership with state governments to establish zonal offices across the country.

“The necessary mechanisms are already being put in place, with at least three zonal offices expected to commence operations within the next few weeks. This will bring the office closer to taxpayers, particularly those who may otherwise face difficulties accessing our services from outside the Federal Capital Territory,” he said.

Speaking at the event, the Director of Finance and Administration at the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), Mr. Emmanuel S. Nyang, who represented the Registrar-General of the commission, described the engagement as timely and important, given the critical role of tax administration in Nigeria.

Nyang said collaboration between the CAC and OTO could not be over-emphasised, noting that the CAC serves as a critical gateway into the economy through the registration and regulation of companies, limited liability partnerships, limited partnerships, business names and incorporated trustees.

He said the commission provides government with reliable corporate and business information that supports economic planning, regulation and law enforcement.

“Our ongoing reforms are therefore not only aimed at making business registration easier and faster, but also at improving the quality, integrity and reliability of information maintained in the corporate registry,” he said.
Nyang added that the CAC’s work on beneficial ownership transparency was particularly relevant to the discussion, as it identifies the natural persons who ultimately own or control legal entities.

According to him, such transparency assists regulatory and supervisory authorities and helps prevent the misuse of companies and other legal persons for illicit purposes.

“A reliable corporate registry integrated appropriately with other government information systems can contribute significantly to improved taxpayer identification, data verification, compliance monitoring and the reduction of opportunities for tax evasion and other financial crimes,” he said.

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