Nigeria Signs Tax Data MoU with France Amid Sovereignty Debate

The Federal Inland Revenue Service sealed a memorandum of understanding with France’s tax authority on Dec 10, sparking an immediate wave of debate across Lagos and Abuja.

The pact, signed by FIRS Director‑General Abubakar Adamu and his French counterpart, aims to link Nigeria’s tax administration platform with France’s digital systems for real‑time data exchange.

Under the agreement, taxpayer information, filing records and compliance reports will flow through a secure cloud gateway, allowing both sides to verify cross‑border transactions and curb evasion.

Critics, however, cried foul, warning that the deal could erode Nigeria’s fiscal sovereignty and expose sensitive data to foreign hands.

Security sources confirmed that the agreement was vetted by the National Security Adviser’s office, but they warned that any breach could have national security implications.

Nigeria has long struggled to broaden its tax base; the World Bank estimates that less than 10 % of the formal economy pays income tax, leaving a massive revenue gap.

Previous attempts at digitalisation, such as the 2022 e‑Tax portal, delivered mixed results, hampered by poor connectivity and low taxpayer awareness.

France’s Directorate General of Public Finance, a key player in the EU’s cross‑border tax information network, sees the MoU as a pilot for wider African cooperation.

The move arrives as ECOWAS pushes member states to improve fiscal transparency, while investors demand clearer tax regimes to unlock the $50 billion infrastructure pipeline Nigeria is courting.

In a statement, FIRS officials said the partnership will ‘strengthen compliance, boost revenue and protect the nation’s fiscal interests through advanced technology.’

Civil society groups, including the Tax Justice Network Nigeria chapter, warned that the MoU lacked clear safeguards for data protection and called for parliamentary oversight.

If implemented well, the data link could lift annual revenue by up to $1.2 billion, according to an internal FIRS projection shared with reporters.

Yet the fear remains that foreign access to taxpayer databases could be leveraged for political pressure or commercial exploitation, a concern echoed by several lawmakers.

The MoU references Nigeria’s 2022 Data Protection Regulation, obliging both parties to encrypt files and limit access to authorized officials, a clause that analysts say could mitigate some privacy fears.

Earlier this year, FIRS signed a similar information‑sharing pact with Kenya’s revenue service, a move that sparked protests in Nairobi and raised alarms in Abuja about a growing web of foreign tax links.

Social media users have already taken to Twitter, tagging the Ministry of Finance and demanding transparency, while some business owners fear the new system could increase audit pressure on small and medium enterprises.

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