Nigeria's tax revenue triples to N36.8 trillion, one year after Tinubu's reform laws

One year after President Bola Tinubu signed Nigeria's landmark tax reform laws, the government is pointing to a sharp rise in revenue as evidence that the changes are working.

According to figures reported by Vanguard, Nigeria's tax revenue climbed from about N10.1 trillion in 2023 to roughly N21.6 trillion in 2024, and then to about N36.8 trillion in 2025 — more than tripling over two years.

The momentum has carried into 2026. Officials say N21.6 trillion was already realised within the first six months of the year, putting the country on course for another record annual total if the pace holds.

Speaking this month, President Tinubu said the consistency of the reforms had stabilised the economy, telling supporters that Nigeria had "passed the darkest tunnel" and entered what he described as a golden era of steadier growth.

The reform programme has been contentious. The removal of the fuel subsidy and the liberalisation of the naira, introduced early in Tinubu's tenure, delivered a painful surge in the cost of living that many households are still absorbing.

International observers have offered qualified praise. Outgoing British High Commissioner Richard Montgomery said the reforms would put Nigeria on a better long-term footing, while acknowledging they had caused short-term pain for ordinary people.

Higher tax revenue matters because it widens the fiscal space a government has to fund infrastructure, security and services without relying as heavily on borrowing or on volatile oil earnings.

The open question is distribution: whether stronger public finances at the federal level translate into visible improvements — cheaper transport, better power, functioning hospitals — that Nigerians can feel in daily life. That, more than any headline figure, will determine how the reforms are ultimately judged.