FG Criminalises loss of documents of the Revenue Service, the transgressors risk a fine, prison sentence

The Federal Government has approved rigorous penalties for anyone who has been considered guilty of losses or trying to lose internal documents, communications or institutional data belonging to the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), which will be renamed the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) from January 2026.

The new tax legislation, recently signed in law, prescribes a fine of up to ₦ 5 million, a prison sentence of three years, or both, for offenders.

The law classifies all internal registers, memos and service communications as confidential, limiting their use strictly for the tax administration and the information ordered by the Court.

According to party VI (various provisions) of the law, only three conditions justify the dissemination: an order of court, the authorization by the service or the need to enforce Nigerian tax laws or international tax agreements.

“A person who acts official or employed in the administration of this law who communicates or tries to communicate this confidential information without authorization commits a crime and is responsible for the sentence,” says the law.

The legislation also protects the NRS officials and their documents to be forced to proceeds not to the taxes.

It also limits the period of time for legal actions against the service or its officers three months from the date of the accident, or six months in the event of continuous accident, in line with the law on the protection of public officers.

Government officials say that the move aims to curb persistent losses of sensitive state documents that threaten institutional integrity and national security.

Last year, the secretary of the government of the Federation, George Akume, warned that unauthorized dissemination were a crime pursuant to section 97 (2) of the criminal code, punishable with a one -year imprisonment.

While tax experts recognize that the measure could strengthen data security and increase public revenue reforms, some analysts warn that the law must be implemented with guarantees to avoid suffocating informer and public responsibility.

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