As directed by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), commercial banks in Nigeria have begun the implementation of the N50 stamp duty on every lodgement in current accounts worth N1,000 and above amidst customer complaints.
A bank customer, who said she is a proprietor of a small school, told Punch in Abuja on Tuesday that she was alarmed when she received an alert that N30,000 had been deducted from her account for stamp duties.
She said, “I am aware of the controversial stamp duty but I never imagined that this was what it was leading to. How can N30,000 be deducted from our account in one fell swoop? There was no notice; no explanation of what was coming.
“I do not understand the basis for this deduction at all. How can they charge me stamp duty when no stamp, electronic or physical, was affixed to our receipts. In fact, there was no receipt whatsoever. It is even outrageous for the bank to charge me N30,000. They sent me an alert of the deduction of N30,000. For N50 to amount to N30,000, there must have been 600 lodgements.”
“If the government kills the small businesses that it calls the engine of growth of the economy; then, it would have killed the economy. Stamp duty is an addition to the other levies and taxes we pay. If the stamp duty is on current accounts alone; then, I am closing mine immediately.
The Federal Government is expected make a sum of N2.5tn from stamp duty on an annual basis. Which will pass as the highest source of revenue to the government.