Taxation of non-resident individuals in Nigeria

Section 201 of the Nigeria Tax Act defines a “non-resident individual” as an individual who, in any year of assessment:

1. Is not domiciled in Nigeria;
2. Has no permanent place available for their domestic use in Nigeria;
3. Has no place of habitual abode in Nigeria;
4. Has no substantial economic and immediate family ties in Nigeria;
5. Sojourns in Nigeria for a period or periods amounting to an aggregate of less than 183 days in a 12-month period, inclusive of annual leave or temporary period of absence; and
6. Is not serving as a diplomat or diplomatic agent of Nigeria in another country.

Tax liability

A non-resident individual who earns income from Nigeria is liable to pay personal income tax in Nigeria. Section 17(1) of the Nigeria Tax Act states:

“The income, profits or gains of a non-resident person accruing in, or derived from Nigeria are chargeable to tax in accordance with the provisions of this Act.”

Non-resident individuals who earn only passive income from investments like dividends pay only withholding tax in Nigeria. Withholding tax is the final tax and is deducted from all dividend payments to shareholders by the company paying the dividend. The company paying the dividend also remits the withholding tax to the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS).

Relevant tax authority

An expatriate who qualifies as a non-resident individual under Section 201 of the Nigeria Tax Act must file personal income tax returns with the NRS by 31 March of the year following the year income was derived from Nigeria. 

Section 3(1) of the 12th Schedule to the Nigeria Tax Act states:

Other employments

(1) An employee whose remuneration is subject to income tax in Nigeria for a year of assessment, but who has no place or principal place of residence in the territory of a State in Nigeria for that year under the provisions of paragraph 2 of this Schedule, shall be deemed to hold a foreign employment, and if he has no territory of residence in a State for that year under the provisions of paragraph 1 of this Schedule, shall be deemed to be a person to whom section 3(1)(a)(iv) of the Nigeria Tax Administration Act applies.

Section 3(1)(a)(iv) of the Nigeria Tax Administration Act states:

The Nigeria Revenue Service (the Service) established under the Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Act, 2025 shall

• have exclusive responsibility to administer taxes: (iv) on non-resident persons who derive profit or income from Nigeria or any income derived from employment in Nigeria by a person, not being a resident of any State in Nigeria. 

Tax ID

All non-resident individuals deriving non-passive income from Nigeria must register with the NRS Non-Resident Persons Tax Office and obtain a tax ID.

---

Helen E. Ijewere is currently the Regional Chair MEA of the GGI Global Mobility Solutions Practice Group. She is a Director at Nolands Nigeria. Her areas of specialisation are Global Mobility Solutions, Tax, Corporate Governance, Risk, Ethics, Compliance and Fraud. She joined the firm in January 2016 from private practice. She has a JD from the University of North Carolina School of Law, Chapel Hill, NC, USA, and a BA from Trinity College, Washington, DC, USA.