The President of the Multidisciplinary Finance Professionals Group otherwise known as MFP Global Services, Dr Prince Oyebade Oyedepo FCA, JP has enlightened the staff of Kogi State Internal Revenue Service on procedures for combating tax crime in Nigeria.
The MFP topnotch gave the lecture titled tax crimes and procedures for combating it at a 3-day training programme organized by Kogi State Internal Revenue Service for her staffers on theme titled, “Techniques in Tax Audit and Investigation, applying the new Tax Law-2025 to enhance Revenue Generation” effective from the 31st Day of August, 2026 to the 2nd of September, 2026.
In the introduction of his paper, Dr Prince Oyebade Oyedepo described taxation as “the most reliable and sustainable source of revenue available to governments for financing public infrastructure, social services, and national development. Beyond this, taxation also serves as an instrument of economic redistribution and a tool for regulating consumption, inflation and investment behaviour.
However, the effectiveness and efficiency of any tax system is mostly threatened by the persistent and evolving phenomenon of tax crimes, a category of economic offenses that undermines revenue mobilisation, distorts fair competition among taxpayers, and erodes public confidence in the fiscal system.
Tax crime is not a new problem; it has trailed taxation for as long as governments have imposed compulsory levies on citizens and businesses in the early period of tax collection in Nigeria or elsewhere. What has changed over time is its scale and sophistication, aided by globalisation, technology, digital finance, and the growing complexity of corporate structures.
In Nigeria, tax crime constitutes a significant drain on public revenue and a considerable obstacle to the country’s drive towards domestic resource mobilisation, particularly given the country’s continued dependence on oil revenue and a tax-to-GDP ratio that remains among the lowest in the world (Ogbonna & Ebimobowei, cited in Michaelmas Chambers, n.d.)”.
Dr Oyebade Oyedepo highlighted the different types of tax as; Falsification of Tax records and Document, Under-reporting or Concealment of Income, Fraudulent claims for Tax Deductions or Relief, VAT Fraud, Withholding Tax Fraud, Payroll Tax Fraud, Tax Fraud Through Related-Party Transactions, Transfer Pricing Manipulation, Customs and Import/Export Tax Fraud, Tax Refund Fraud, Use of Fictitious or Shell Entities For Tax Fraud, Concealment of Assets and Beneficial Ownership and Obstruction of Tax Administration.
He emphasized on the various causes of tax crime as; High Tax Burden and Perceived Tax Unfairness, Weak Tax Enforcement and Ineffective Prosecution, Corruption within the Tax Administration System, Complexity and Ambiguity of Tax Laws, Informal Nature of a Significant Portion of Economic Activities, Cash-Based Transactions and Poor Transaction Traceability, Poor Taxpayer Morale and Negative Attitudes Towards Taxation, Lack of Trust in Government and Perceived Misuse of Public Revenue, Profit Maximization and Personal Financial Gain, Weak Internal Controls and Corporate Governance, Professional Facilitation of Tax Fraud, Underdeveloped Tax Information and Data-Sharing Systems and Cross-Border Transactions and Concealment of Assets.
The MFP top-brass also mentioned the effects of tax crime on revenue generation and economic development as; Loss of Government Revenue, Increased Burden on Compliant Taxpayers, Unfair Competition, Weakening of Tax Morale, Increased Cost of Tax Administration, Undermining Economic Development and Encouragement of Other Financial Crimes.
He elucidated the procedures for the detection and investigation of tax crime as, Taxpayer Registration and Identification, Filing of Tax Returns, Risk Assessment and Tax Intelligence, Tax Audit, Tax Investigation, Gathering and Preservation of Evidence, Assessment and Reassessment, Recovery of Unpaid Tax, Application of Administrative Penalties and Prosecution of Tax Offenders.
Dr Prince Oyebade Oyedepo stated the Legal and Institutional Measures for Combating Tax Crime as; Nigeria Tax Act, 2025, Nigeria Tax Administration Act, 2025, Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Act, 2025 and Joint Revenue Board (Establishment) Act, 2025.
The finance guru mentioned the challenges of combating tax crime in Nigeria as; Corruption within the enforcement chain, Weak institutional capacity, Judicial delay, Destruction of evidence needed to carry out investigation or prosecution of offenders, Inability to detect tax fraud perpetrated by syndicates, Statute of limitation or Statute-Barred Claim, Use of advanced technology or artificial intelligence to falsify some records, documents and evidence and Frequent changes in administrative processes for filing and paying taxes may constitute barrier in detecting tax crime.
The Anti-Corruption Czar proffered strategies for effective prevention and control of tax crime as; Digitalisation and real-time transaction monitoring, AI-driven anomaly detection, Unified taxpayer identity and cross-agency data-sharing, Strengthened inter-agency and international cooperation, Whistleblower mechanisms, Stronger, consistently enforced penalties and prosecution, Capacity building for auditors, investigators, and forensic accountants and Taxpayer education and voluntary compliance culture.
In conclusion, Dr Prince Oyebade Oyedepo mentioned that legislation alone cannot eliminate tax crime. Effective control of tax crime requires a balanced approach. It involves holistic and pragmatic method which includes preventive, detective and punitive actions to ameliorate tax crime in Nigeria. Ultimately, combating tax crime should not be viewed solely as an enforcement responsibility. It requires the collective commitment of tax authorities, taxpayers, professional advisers, financial institutions, law-enforcement agencies and other relevant stakeholders. Therefore, the effective fight against tax crime is essential not only for protecting government revenue but also for strengthening the integrity of Nigeria’s tax system and creating a sustainable foundation for national economic development.
