Kemi runs a consulting firm in Abuja. Last month she invoiced a client ₦430,000 (₦400,000 plus VAT). The client paid ₦410,000 and said "we deducted WHT." She had no idea what rate they used, whether it was correct, or what to do with the receipt they sent.
Corrected 10 October 2026. Some rates on earlier versions of this page did not match the gazetted First Schedule of the Withholding Regulations 2024. The table below follows the gazetted schedule. In particular, the consultancy rate does not depend on whether the person paid is a company or an individual: it is 5% for any resident with a TIN.
If you have ever been in that position, or if you are the client working out what to deduct, this page has the answer in one place.
These rates come from the First Schedule of the Deduction of Tax at Source (Withholding) Regulations 2024 (S.I. No. 34, gazetted 2 October 2024, in force from 1 January 2025). We found no replacement schedule under the Nigeria Tax Act 2025. The payer deducts the percentage shown from the amount before VAT.
The law sets the rate by whether the person paid is resident in Nigeria or not. For most categories it does not matter whether they are a company or an individual.
No TIN? The rate doubles. Where the person paid has no Tax Identification Number, the rate is twice the figure above for non-passive income such as fees, commission, construction and services (not dividends, interest, rent or royalties). A consultant without a TIN suffers 10% instead of 5%.
If your income type is not on this list, ask your client which category they used before you accept the deduction.
The rate applies to the invoice amount before VAT.
Her client remits the ₦20,000 to the tax authority and must give Kemi a receipt for it. That ₦20,000 is not lost: it is an advance payment of her income tax for the year. When she files her Company Income Tax or Personal Income Tax return, she deducts it from what she owes. It does not reduce VAT.
Try it with your own numbers. Enter your invoice amount and what it is for, and see what your client should deduct and pay you. Open the free WHT calculator
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Paying a supplier instead? You deduct, remit by the 21st and give them a receipt: see how to deduct and remit WHT, or use the calculator's payer side. New to WHT? How withholding tax works in Nigeria.
When someone deducts WHT from your payment, the Regulations require them to give you a receipt once they remit it (regulation 8). It shows:
Keep every WHT receipt. It is your evidence when you claim the credit against your income tax. The NRS may also issue a credit note after the payer remits.
Companies, government bodies and other organisations that pay for the items in the table must deduct. The Regulations exempt a small company from deducting where the supplier has a valid TIN and the month's transactions with that supplier are ₦2,000,000 or less. For this exemption the Regulations, made in 2024, describe a small company as one with gross turnover of ₦25 million or less a year. That is lower than the Nigeria Tax Act 2025 small-company test used for income tax (₦100 million turnover and ₦250 million fixed assets), so if your turnover is above ₦25 million, confirm with a tax adviser before you stop deducting.
The WHT your clients deduct is part of your income tax bill, paid in advance.
① File your CIT or PIT return and work out the total tax on your profit.
② Add up the WHT receipts you received during the year.
③ Subtract the WHT total from your income tax.
④ Pay only the difference.
If your WHT credits are more than your income tax, the excess can be carried forward or claimed back. Applying it forward is usually faster in practice.
The most common errors since the 2024 Regulations:
Ask the payer to correct it. Check every receipt against the table above when you are paid.
When a client pays you less because they withheld tax, record the WHT with the payment in Lucrive. The invoice is settled, and the credit waits in WHT Receipts until you have their receipt. If you deduct WHT from your own suppliers, Lucrive works out the rate, tells you when to remit it and creates the receipt in the Regulations' format. See the complete guide: Withholding Tax in Nigeria: A Complete Guide for Business Owners.
Check your next invoice with the free WHT calculator. Then create a free Lucrive account to keep every WHT credit in one place.
This is a guide, not tax advice. Confirm your position with a qualified tax practitioner.
Sources & further reading
People and businesses in our examples are illustrative, not real Lucrive customers. Figures are worked examples: confirm your own position with a qualified tax adviser.