JURISPRUDENTIAL FOUNDATION FOR EMPLOYER AS AGENT TO TAX AUTHORITY UNDER THE NIGERIA TAX ADMINISTRATION ACT 2025

Abstract

Abstract 
Before the advent of the new Tax Act 2025, the relationship between Taxpayer, Employers and 
Tax authorities has been that of social contract as well as strict individual liability in case of 
inadequate tax filing and compliance. A taxpayer that fails to comply promptly faces severe 
sanctions from the tax authority. However, with the advent of the new Tax Administration Act, 
2025, that has changed. In the new Act, the employer in the corporate organisation now turns to 
Agent of the tax authority and jointly liable for some of the act of the taxpayer in the event of 
lack of adequate compliance and inapt filing of tax returns; an act that was purely a statutory 
function of the taxpayers. Using doctrinal research method, this paper appraises the new Tax 
Administration Act, 2025, looking at the imbroglio in the provision on filing of tax returns to 
diagnose the jurisprudential foundation for making employer to now be jointly liable with the 
employee for an offence committed by employee personally. From the analysis, the paper finds 
that, making employer to now be an agent to tax authority as done in the new Tax Administration 
Act, 2025 is an aberration of tax principles of personal responsibility and liability. The paper 
also finds inconsistencies in the categories of tax stakeholders designated to be carrying out such 
function as agent to tax authority as provided in sections 51, 81, 105 and 107 of the Act. 
Nonetheless, the paper concludes that, even though making employer of labour to function as 
agent to tax authority in personal responsibility of an employee is an aberration, doing so may 
likely promote transparency, strengthens accountability and encourage tax compliance in 
personal income tax administration in Nigeria. To achieve this, the paper recommends for the 
amendment of sections 51, 81, 105 and 107 of the Act to reflect and name a specific office/tax 
stakeholders that will be saddled with the responsibility of collecting, remitting and filing of tax 
returns as agent of tax authority aside from taxpayers himself as envisaged under the Nigeria 
Tax Administration Act, 2025.