The Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission has launched a major investigation into the collection and sharing of the Electronic Money Transfer Levy from 2019 to 2022. The probe aims to ensure all money from the tax on digital transactions was properly accounted for and sent to government coffers.
The inquiry is being carried out by the commission's Inland Revenue Monitoring Committee. The committee chairman, Dr. Kolade Daniel Abimbola, stated the investigation falls under the commission's legal power to demand financial information from any government agency or company. He said the goal is to provide transparency and accountability for this key source of public money. The monitoring exercise also seeks to improve the system for future tax collection .
The investigation focuses on a fixed ₦50 charge applied to electronic money transfers of ₦10,000 or more. This levy, known as the EMTL, was first introduced through the Finance Act of 2019. It was designed to generate more money for the government from the growing number of digital payments . Financial institutions collect the fee from each qualifying transfer and are required to send the money to the Federal Inland Revenue Service . The law has been amended several times, with the most recent change altering how the collected revenue is distributed among Nigeria's three tiers of government .
As part of the investigation, the commission's officials visited the Nigerian Deposit Insurance Corporation in November 2025. They asked for the corporation's help with technical support and data sharing for the monitoring exercise. The NDIC manages a deposit guarantee system and plays a key role in the country's financial landscape. Its managing director, Thompson Oluwadare Sunday, promised the commission his group's full support. He said the NDIC is ready to help make the monitoring system for the levy stronger . The director of the RMAFC's Inland Revenue Department, Dr. Udodirim Okongwu, thanked the NDIC. She said that better tracking of the levy would help the nation's development .
The way revenue from the electronic levy is shared among different levels of government has changed over time. The Finance Act of 2023 set the current sharing formula. It states that 15% of the money goes to the federal government, 50% to state governments, and 35% to local governments . This distribution is based on the principle of derivation, meaning the funds are shared according to their source. These changes show the government's continued focus on the levy as a major source of income . The World Bank had once estimated that Nigeria could make over N 462 billion from this levy in a single year, highlighting its major revenue potential .
The Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission is a constitutional body created to monitor money coming into and going out of the national account. One of its main jobs is to block leaks in government revenue . It also reviews the formula that decides how money is shared between the federal, state, and local governments. The commission has the power to get data and documents from any agency or company about revenue sent from the Federation Account . This probe into the electronic transfer levy is a direct use of that power.
The effect of the EMTL on the economy and people has been a topic of discussion. While it provides the government with a steady stream of funds, it also adds to the cost of doing business digitally. Each transaction over ₦10,000 costs an extra ₦50. Over time, these small charges can add up for individuals and businesses . Some experts worry that such taxes could slow down the move toward a cashless society by making digital payments more expensive .
The RMAFC's investigation into the Electronic Money Transfer Levy is a major step toward ensuring all levels of government get the revenue they are owed. The result of this probe could lead to better systems for collecting and tracking this tax in the future. It may also provide a clearer picture of the full amount of money generated by the levy since its start. This is important for public trust and for planning how to use these funds for national development projects .