Nigeria's Company Income Tax (CIT) revenue fell sharply by 31.05 percent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2026, reflecting the challenging business environment, while Value-Added Tax (VAT) collections recorded significant growth, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
CIT Revenue Decline
The NBS Q1 2026 CIT report showed that revenue from CIT dropped to N1.37 trillion, a 31.05 percent decline compared to N1.98 trillion generated in Q1 2025. On a quarter-on-quarter basis, CIT revenue also fell by 8.08 percent from N1.49 trillion recorded in Q4 2025.
The report attributed the decline to the harsh economic conditions that have forced many businesses to scale down operations, relocate abroad, or shut down completely. This trend has been affecting CIT collections in recent quarters.
Domestic and Foreign Contributions
Domestic CIT contributed N538.91 billion, while foreign CIT payments accounted for N828.82 billion during the quarter. The foreign component made up the larger share of total CIT revenue.
Sectoral Performance
In terms of sectoral shares, financial and insurance activities accounted for the largest portion at 24.73 percent, followed by mining and quarrying at 16.06 percent, and manufacturing at 13.82 percent.
VAT Revenue Growth
In contrast, VAT revenue rose to N2.42 trillion in Q1 2026, an increase of 17.06 percent from N2.06 trillion recorded in Q1 2025. On a quarter-on-quarter basis, VAT collections increased by 9.98 percent from N2.2 trillion in Q4 2025.
Historical Context
CIT revenue has been volatile. In Q4 2025, CIT stood at N1.49 trillion, a 49.81 percent decrease quarter-on-quarter from N2.96 trillion in Q3 2025. The Q3 2025 figure had shown a marginal growth of 6.55 percent from N2.78 trillion in Q2 2025, driven largely by foreign payments which contributed N1.75 trillion, while domestic CIT was N1.21 trillion.
The NBS data highlights the contrasting fortunes of CIT and VAT, with the latter benefiting from increased consumption and possibly improved compliance, while CIT suffers from corporate distress.
