Nigeria’s revenue authority has released comprehensive crypto tax guidelines, officially making profits from digital asset transactions, staking, mining, airdrops, and DeFi rewards taxable under the country’s updated tax laws. The Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) published the Guidelines on Taxation of Virtual Assets on July 31 and publicly announced them on August 3, detailing how the Nigeria Tax Act 2025 and Nigeria Tax Administration Act 2025 apply to virtual assets.
Under the new framework, exchanges and peer-to-peer (P2P) marketplace operators must collect, report, and remit taxes on covered transactions. Platforms are required to withhold 1% from taxable crypto disposals, which serves as an advance payment toward the taxpayer’s final income tax bill. Stablecoin sales are explicitly exempt from this 1% withholding, though other tax obligations may still arise depending on the nature of the transaction.
Staking rewards, mining income, airdrops, and returns from decentralized finance (DeFi) activities face 10% withholding when classified as taxable income. Additionally, a 1.5% stamp duty is levied on transfers from fiat to tokens and from tokens to fiat, to be collected by the platform or marketplace handling the transaction.
One of the most unusual requirements concerns the form of payment: income tax deducted at source and stamp duty must be remitted to the NRS in the token used for the underlying transaction, while VAT must be paid in the currency used for payment. The guidelines also place exchanges and P2P operators at the center of enforcement duties, mandating them to register for tax purposes, maintain detailed transaction records, and report information that allows the NRS to identify taxable users, including Tax Identification Numbers and, where applicable, National Identification Numbers.
The taxable events now include selling, exchanging, or transferring digital assets when beneficial ownership changes, and crypto payments for goods or services must be valued at market price on the transaction date. However, simply holding a token, transfers between wallets controlled by the same owner, minting an NFT before its sale, and receiving a crypto-backed loan are not taxable. Profits from crypto disposals are integrated into general taxable income rather than following the previous standalone 10% capital gains model. Companies (excluding qualifying small businesses) face a 30% income tax rate, while individuals are subject to progressive personal income tax rates.
The guidelines stem from a July 18 executive order by President Bola Tinubu that created a Virtual Asset Council chaired by the Central Bank of Nigeria, with the NRS and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) serving as vice chairs. The SEC retains authority over securities-related assets, and the central bank oversees payment, settlement, and custody services involving non-security assets. Nigeria’s Senate is also considering the Virtual Asset Service Providers Regulation Bill 2026, which would introduce licensing and compliance requirements for digital asset businesses.
The immediate impact falls on exchanges and P2P operators, which must adjust their transaction systems, customer records, and remittance processes. Further guidance may be needed on token custody, conversion procedures, and how the NRS will receive and account for taxes paid in multiple digital assets.
