Global auditing firm, KPMG, has berated the Federal Inland Revenue Service for freezing bank accounts of suspected tax defaulters.
KPMG said giving fiats to banks to freeze the accounts contravene the Companies Income Tax Act.
It said, “Nothing in the CITA or FIRSEA authorises the FIRS to impose a freeze order on a taxpayer’s bank account beyond the amount of tax proven to be due and payable by that taxpayer.
“The requirement directed to banks not to honour mandates from taxpayers over and above the tax amount supposedly proven by FIRS to be due and payable is without foundation and goes too far.”
“The letters to the SBs leave them with seven days within which to comply with the directives of the FIRS. This is contrary to the provisions of Sections 69 and 77(3) of CITA, which permits a taxpayer a 30-day period of review and objection.”
Read also: U.S. Senate passes border security bill, sends to House
In addition to freezing the accounts, the tax collector also stopped some companies from paying staff salaries or carrying out routine transactions.
The FIRS ordered the banks to deduct the alleged tax debt from these bank accounts “in full or partial payment”.
The KPMG’s statement was contained in its KPMG in Nigeria issue 2.5 released in February 2019. The firm noted that the FIRS had gone too far in its bid to get more people into the tax net.
KPMG maintained that Section 69 of Companies Income Tax Act (CITA) 2004 “allows a taxpayer to object to a disputed assessment within thirty (30) days from the date of service of the notice of assessment”.
Section 77 (3) of CITA further provides that the collection of tax, in any case where notice of an objection or appeal has been given by a taxpayer, shall remain in abeyance until such objection or appeal is determined,” KPMG added.