The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) has reaffirmed its commitment to enhancing tax transparency and compliance through the introduction of a nationwide electronic invoicing (E-Invoicing) system, with a pilot scheme expected to go live on July 25.
According to FIRS, an e-invoice is a machine-readable digital document enabling automated processing by the recipient’s accounting systems, developed locally by D’Accubin Technology Limited and follows global standards.
Speaking during a two-day sector engagement with stakeholders from the manufacturers and oil and gas midstream sector in Lagos, top officials of the service emphasised the importance of the initiative to national development, tax efficiency, and private sector growth.
The Lead Consultant for the FIRS Merchant Buyer System (MBS), Sediq Arogundade, explained that the meeting was part of a series of consultations aimed at integrating the peculiarities of each sector into the system design. He said FIRS has adopted a phased approach, starting with large taxpayers, to ensure a smooth rollout.
“We have gotten a lot of interest from taxpayers who had no previous engagement with FIRS and are now interested in the product. The system is built to follow global best practices, using an interoperable model,” Arogundade said.
He disclosed that the new system is already functional and currently being piloted by several large taxpayers, with some fully prepared to go live in July. However, he clarified that participation is not yet mandatory.
“The system is fully ready. We have built a 100 per cent Representational State Transfer Application Programming Interface (RESTful API) system. There’s no commercial solution developed by us, and we don’t intend to build one. We are standing as regulators, allowing innovators and Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) to build add-on commercial solutions that businesses can use to generate electronic invoices efficiently,” he said.
Arogundade noted that the Pan European Procurement Online (PEPO) adopted for the project was designed to allow seamless integration and flexibility.
“Taxpayers have the choice to report in real-time or near real-time. The model also enables secure and efficient cross-border transactions, boosting Nigeria’s global competitiveness,” he added.
On the role of OEMs, Arogundade said several OEMs such as those building POS systems or accounting software are already in discussions with FIRS to create middleware and connectors that allow seamless integration into existing business systems.
Director of Technology Development at FIRS, Richard Kimeku, emphasised that the e-invoicing initiative is about promoting transparency in tax administration. According to him, the new system is not a payment platform but a tool to access transactional data in real-time.
“It’s extremely critical because it gives us visibility into transactions, helping us understand taxpayer liabilities and curbing practices like turnover suppression,” Kimeku said.
He explained that the data generated will not only aid FIRS in tax administration but also serve as a valuable resource for businesses, government planning, and even security analysis. “It allows businesses to monitor purchasing trends and market dynamics while helping the government plan well through accurate data,” he added.
The Acting Director of Tax Automation at FIRS, Mike Adoga, described the system as a vital component of the National E-Invoicing Project. He explained that e-invoicing allows real-time electronic exchange of invoices between businesses and their customers, with tax implications automatically captured within the system.
