Senate Probes ₦34tn Import Duty Waivers as Customs Defends Exemptions, Warns of Revenue Loss

The Senate Committee on Finance has begun a fresh probe into the Federal Government’s import duty waiver regime after the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) disclosed that Import Duty Exemption Certificate (IDEC) approvals soared to ₦34 trillion in 2025, significantly affecting the Service’s revenue generation.

The disclosure came on Monday as the committee also threatened to sanction the heads of several government agencies, including the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), Industrial Training Fund (ITF) and Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Jabi, for failing to appear before lawmakers.

Appearing before the committee, Comptroller-General of Customs Bashir Adewale Adeniyi said government fiscal policies, particularly import duty waivers introduced in March 2020, had constrained the Service’s revenue performance despite improvements in collections.

According to him, duty exemption approvals reached ₦34 trillion in 2025, with nearly 60 per cent covering military hardware imports exempted from duties to support Nigeria’s security operations.

He explained that other waivers were granted for the importation of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) equipment, electric and hybrid vehicles, healthcare equipment and medical supplies, industrial machinery and manufacturing inputs, as well as food import intervention programmes.

Adeniyi argued that duty waivers should not be viewed strictly as a loss of revenue, noting that they are designed to promote national security, industrial growth, healthcare delivery and economic development.

He, however, called for stronger government oversight to ensure beneficiaries of the waivers deliver the intended economic benefits, including increased local production, lower prices and improved access to essential goods and services.

The Customs boss further disclosed that the Service had generated ₦4.5 trillion as of June 30, 2026, out of its ₦11.04 trillion revenue target for the year.

During the hearing, the Fiscal Responsibility Commission (FRC) alleged that the Nigeria Customs Service had failed to remit ₦8.9 billion in operating surplus to the Consolidated Revenue Fund as of 2019. Customs rejected the allegation.

The commission also accused the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) of owing ₦13.9 billion in unremitted operating surplus between 2023 and 2025. CAC Registrar-General Hussaini Ishaq Magaji acknowledged the outstanding liability but said the commission had begun settling the amount.

Chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance, Senator Sani Musa (Niger East), directed the CAC, the FRC and the committee to reconcile the disputed figures and submit a report within two weeks.

The committee also frowned at the absence of the chief executives of the NCAA, SMEDAN, ITF and FMC Jabi from the investigative session.

Senator Musa warned that any agency head who fails to appear at the next hearing would face severe sanctions, including the invocation of relevant provisions of the Senate’s rules.