THE Federal Government has temporarily suspended the implementation of the new annual levies which the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) of Nigeria intends to impose on private firms.
The levy raised concerns recently, especially from the organised private sector, including the Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA) and the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN).
Also, the Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines, and Agriculture (NACCIMA), Oil Producers Trade Section (OPTS), and Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria (ALTON) shared similar concerns.
At a stakeholders’ forum on Wednesday, March 26, in Abuja, the Minister of Industry, Trade, and Investment, Jumoke Oduwole, said the Federal Government had ordered the suspension of the levies.
She explained that the suspension was to allow for a review of the growing concerns.
“The government has decided to direct the Financial Reporting Council to pause in the implementation of the new annual dues. You know that I am a lawyer, and a suspension request by the organised private sector would be in contravention of legislation duly passed by the National Assembly. A pause is an administrative process simply to review, in line with what we discussed today,” Oduwole said.
She explained that the private sector had requested the suspension of the levies from the initial three months to an indefinite time. He said he expected the pause to be for 60 days.
“We are going to set up a technical working group comprising the FRC and the organised private sector who have formally written in, and this will be reviewed,” assured the minister.
The FRC Amendment Act 2023 imposes cumulative annual charges on non-listed entities and includes a contentious provision for a 10 per cent penalty on unpaid dues for every month of default until full payment is made.
The measure, stakeholders said, could negatively impact businesses, especially with the challenging economic environment in the country.
At the heart of the argument lies Section 33(1)(c) of the FRC Act, which mandates quoted companies to pay annual dues based on 0.002 per cent of their market capitalisation or N25 million, whichever is lower.
However, stakeholders have been wary of how this would affect companies’ financial stability.
Former President Muhammadu Buhari signed the 2023 amended Act into law in May 2023.