The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) has pledged to support domestic airlines to ensure they remain in business and are able to meet their value added tax (VAT) remittance obligations.
Assistant secretary of the Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON), Mr. Ewos Iroro, made this known in a statement on Sunday in Lagos.
Iroro disclosed that the pledge was made by the FIRS chairman, Mr. Babatunde Fowler, during a recent meeting with a delegation from AON and the International Air Transport Association (IATA) in Abuja.
He quoted Fowler as saying, “The Federal Government recognised the challenges being faced by domestic airlines and was willing to meet them half way with regard to tax laws.”
Fowler advised the AON to engage the Presidency through the Department on the Ease of Doing Business, the Senate and the Minister of Finance to dialogue on how the laws could be amended.
This, he said, would enable the airlines to be at par with their competitors and also address challenges by coming up with a lasting solution.
The FIRS boss proposed that airlines should be given concession of two months after the billing period (M+2) to make their VAT remittances, to create room for reconciliation and for airlines to recoup their credit sales.
In his response, the chairman of AON, Capt. Nogie Meggison, noted that there was need to clarify the automation payment process and a 30-day period to allow for invoicing, reconciliation and billing before payment.
Meggisson appealed to Fowler to take a closer look into the issue of VAT for domestic air transportation in Nigeria.