The Honourable Minister of Finance (Minister), Zainab Shamsuna Ahmed, has sworn in the newly selected Commissioners for the recently reconstituted Tax Appeal Tribunal (TAT or the Tribunal). The swearing in ceremony took place on 5 November 2018 in Abuja.
Recall that the Federal Government reconstituted the TAT across the six geopolitical zones as well as Lagos State and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja earlier in the year. However, the Government had not sworn in the newly selected TAT Commissioners. Thus, the TAT had remained non-operational since its reconstitution in July 2018.
At the swearing in ceremony, the Minister highlighted some of the key objectives of the Tribunal, which include reducing the incidence of tax evasion, ensuring fairness and transparency in tax administration and minimizing delays and bottlenecks in the adjudication of tax disputes. The Minister also urged the Commissioners to discharge their duties with high level of integrity, professionalism, diligence and fairness to all parties.
Implication
With the swearing in of the Tax Appeal Commissioners, it is expected that the TAT would begin to entertain tax disputes in the near future. Aggrieved taxpayers should therefore take advantage of the TAT to seek speedy resolution of tax disputes.
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