In a significant shift for Nigeria’s mining sector, the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) has formally assumed responsibility for collecting mineral royalties from operators nationwide. This transition, enacted under the new Nigeria Tax Laws 2025, marks a pivotal step in the government’s comprehensive fiscal reform agenda.
The official handover was confirmed in a joint statement released following a meeting in Abuja between Solid Minerals Minister Dele Alake and NRS Chairman Zacch Adedeji. Effective January 1, 2026, the NRS will now administer all royalty collections. The Ministry of Solid Minerals Development will continue to exercise its technical and regulatory oversight, ensuring that sector-specific expertise is maintained despite the administrative change. The Ministry will also provide critical support through mineral pricing data, geological information, and industry coordination.
This restructuring is a direct outcome of the landmark tax reform bills signed into law by President Bola Tinubu in June 2025. These bills, which include the Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Bill, were designed to centralize federally collectible revenues under a single agency to enhance efficiency, transparency, and accountability. The reforms aim to curb revenue leakages and expand the nation’s non-oil income, positioning solid minerals as a key contributor to economic growth. The move also follows the formal rebranding of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) to the NRS in December 2025.
Observers note that streamlining revenue collection could provide a clearer path for how Nigeria can better harness its vast mineral wealth, a challenge other nations have also faced. The new regime is expected to directly address issues of revenue transparency and compliance, potentially reducing the conflict between revenue generation and regulatory functions. While the change aims to create a more robust system, its implementation will be closely watched by operators managing rising costs across the extraction industry. The success of this centralized model will depend on seamless inter-agency collaboration, much like the coordination seen in other major national projects.
Ultimately, this transition underscores a strategic effort to strengthen governance and fiscal resilience within a critical sector, aligning with the broader recommendations of the Presidential Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms Committee.
