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Court stops FIRS, Rivers, Lagos from collecting VAT

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Court stops FIRS, Rivers, Lagos from collecting VAT

 

The Court of Appeal, Abuja, has stopped the governments of Rivers and Lagos from collecting the Value Added Taxes (VAT).

The court also issued an order of perpetual injunction restraining the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) and the Attorney General of the Federation, from collecting, demanding, threatening and intimidating residents of Rivers to pay to FIRS, Personal Income Tax and VAT.

In a ruling on Friday, Justice Haruna Simon Tsanami, further directed that the law passed by Rivers State House of Assembly and assented to by Governor Nyesom Ezenwo Wike be put on hold.

The judge gave the order just hours before Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu signed the law on VAT.

Sanwo-Olu signed the law moments after he arrived the state from Abuja.

READ: Sanwo-Olu signs Lagos VAT Bill into law

The appellate court’s decision followed an application by the FIRS, seeking a stay of execution of the order of a Federal High Court, Port Harcourt, in the matter.

The court in had in August upheld the powers of the state to collect VAT and Personal Income Tax.

Both Rivers and Lagos state governments have already enacted legislations to give effect to the judgment in respect of VAT.

An earlier application by the FIRS to the high court in Rivers to stay execution of the judgment was on Monday refused by Justice Stephen Dalyop Pam on the grounds that the application would negate the principle of equity as the state legislature had already enacted law on the VAT collection.

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