The Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) has issued new guidelines on the taxation of cryptocurrencies and other virtual assets, introducing a compliance framework for digital asset transactions and penalties for taxpayers and service providers who default on their obligations.
The tax authority announced the guidelines in a statement on Monday, August 3, saying they apply to taxpayers, Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs), peer-to-peer (P2P) marketplace operators, tax practitioners and other participants in Nigeria’s virtual asset ecosystem.
According to the NRS, the framework establishes administrative procedures for taxing virtual assets, including registration, reporting, record-keeping requirements, valuation principles and the tax treatment of digital asset transactions.
The agency said the guidelines followed president Bola Tinubu’s signing of the presidential executive order on virtual assets coordination, on Friday, July 17, to harmonise digital asset regulation and curb financial fraud.
It added that the provisions align with the Nigeria Tax Act, 2025, and the Nigeria Tax Administration Act, 2025, and are intended to improve clarity, consistency and voluntary compliance as the country’s virtual asset market continues to expand.
Under the guidelines, VASPs and P2P marketplace operators who fail to comply with their obligations will face an administrative penalty of ₦10 million for the first month of default and one million Naira for each subsequent month until compliance is achieved.
The obligations include deducting taxes from taxable transactions, accounting for value-added tax (VAT), collecting stamp duties where applicable, remitting taxes within stipulated timelines, filing statutory returns and maintaining proper books and records.
The framework also prescribes penalties of ₦100,000 for failing to file returns or filing incomplete returns in the first month of default and ₦50,000 for each subsequent month, while failure to register attracts ₦50,000 in the first month and ₦25,000 for every additional month of default.
The NRS further stated that failure to keep proper books and records attracts a ₦50,000 penalty for companies and ₦10,000 for individuals, while failure to respond to official notices attracts ₦100,000 for the first day and ₦10,000 for each subsequent day.
The guidelines also provide that virtual assets received as salaries, wages or professional fees will be taxed based on their fair market value on the date of receipt, while income earned through staking, mining, decentralised finance (DeFi) rewards and liquidity incentives will be treated as taxable income.
The agency added that income earned by creators from the sale of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) would be treated as business income, while gains realised by investors disposing of NFTs held as investments would be taxed under the virtual asset guidelines.
According to the NRS, the framework is aimed at providing certainty for taxpayers, improving compliance and ensuring Nigeria’s growing virtual asset ecosystem is effectively brought within the country’s tax system.
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