Nigeria Unveils First Tax Framework for Virtual Assets
The Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) has released its first comprehensive framework for taxing virtual assets. The Guidelines on the Taxation of Virtual Assets aim to reduce tax evasion, broaden the non-oil tax base, and support the government's goal of building a $1 trillion national economy by 2030.
According to the guidelines, taxable income from virtual assets must be evaluated using their fair market value (FMV) on the exact date and time of transaction. Tax obligations apply across several activity categories, including capital gains and token sales, commercial payments and remittances, network and consensus rewards, and decentralized finance (DeFi) earnings.
The framework also imposes strict administrative and reporting requirements on local and foreign-facing Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs) and peer-to-peer (P2P) platform operators. These intermediaries must maintain detailed transaction logs, user identification data, and valuation records for audit purposes, and file periodic information returns detailing user activity and cross-border transfers.
Nigeria's framework reflects a broader regional trend across key African technology hubs to formalize crypto taxation and financial oversight.