Stakeholders Call for Review of Taxes in Aviation Industry

Chinedu Eze

Aviation stakeholders under the aegis of Aviation Round Table (ART) have called for review of and education on charges, duties, Tariffs and Taxes which operators and others who use the airports pay to aviation agencies and other government organisations.

This was contained in the communiqué issued after the breakfast meeting held in Lagos by the think-thank body in Lagos.

The body which communicated its resolution in a statement, said there is the need for policy advocacy and education of all stakeholders to better understand the differences between charges, duties and tariffs in order to better examine their validity, legality and impact to the Nigeria’s economy and to support the federal government’s foreign investment drive which may be negatively impacted by multiple taxes and charges.

It advised all stakeholders affected by multiple charges, taxes, duties and tariffs to collaborate to move against policies that encourage them, noting that in this process the stakeholders are to partner with ART to lobby the various arms of government towards streamlining the charges and encourage the growth of the industry, adding that it would be necessary to produce a draft legislation  related to taxes, tariffs, charges and forward same to the National Assembly for review and passage into law.

 “There should be clear identification and listing of all charges, taxes, duties and tariffs as provided in the schedule from the NCAA. This will provide an opportunity for payers to better understand, interrogate and possibly eliminate some of extraneous and duplicitous charges, taxes, duties and tariffs. It also called on every agency to make a comprehensive list of its charges available in the manner of the NCAA, which creates for a more transparent understanding of charges.

“It called on the efforts by all stakeholders to eliminate the perception that Nigeria’s Lagos and Abuja airports charge are the highest in the world are that they are the most expensive as this perception is a huge scare to foreign investment and not an attractant to the development of the airport and aviation strategy. The high landing and parking fees for cargo aircraft in Nigeria should be reviewed so that interested investors will not keep preferring neighboring countries like Ghana and Togo for their cargo operations, “they said.

The stakeholders said it is important for Nigeria as a nation to cease taxing seeds but, instead, foster an environment that encourages businesses to thrive, bearing fruits that can be taxed, as the country cannot aspire to be competitive while at the same time, burdening businesses with complex processes.

ART added that the existence of multiple charges and levies on cargo export is a huge disincentive to Nigeria’s cargo potential and therefore, should be addressed urgently in the interest of the overall economy.