How to Get a Tax Clearance Certificate in Nigeria (Cost and Steps)

There's no fee for a Tax Clearance Certificate (TCC) in Nigeria. What it really costs is paying any tax you owe for the last three years and filing your returns.

Individuals apply through their state tax portal (etax.lirs.net in Lagos). Companies use NRS's Rev360 portal. Once your file is clean, the tax office has two weeks to issue it or explain why not. Here's the process, as of October 2026.

Quick facts: Tax Clearance Certificate in Nigeria

Sources for every figure here are linked inline below, each checked in October 2026.

What is a Tax Clearance Certificate, and why would you need one?

A TCC is the tax authority's confirmation that you've paid what you owe, or that nothing is due, for each of the last three years of assessment. By law it must show your total profits or income, the tax payable, the tax you've paid, and any balance outstanding for each of those three years (Nigeria Tax Administration Act 2025, section 72(3)).

The same section spells out exactly where a government agency or bank is legally required to demand one from you:

• Applying for a certificate of occupancy
• Getting a building plan approved
• Bidding for a government contract
• Applying for a firearms licence
• Applying for an import or export licence
• Applying for a trade licence

In practice, banks and agencies also ask for a TCC for things like government loan and grant applications, even outside that exact list. If you're not sure a request is lawful, you can still provide it. Having one ready costs you nothing.

How much does a Tax Clearance Certificate cost in Nigeria?

Nothing, as an application fee. The Nigeria Tax Administration Act 2025, NRS's Rev360 documents and Lagos's LIRS eTCC process all list no charge for issuing the certificate. KPMG's breakdown of the LIRS eTCC process and a University of Lagos staff guide to the same portal both describe the checklist and download steps without mentioning any payment for the document itself.

What costs you money:

1. Any tax you owe for the last three years. You can't get a TCC with an unpaid balance, so you have to pay it first.
2. A consultant or accountant, if you use one. This is optional, and there's no standard rate. It depends on how many years of records need sorting and how complicated your accounts are. Get two or three quotes before you commit. A consultant who can't give you a figure upfront is a red flag.
3. Getting into the tax system, if you're currently informal. If you run a side hustle or small trade and have never filed, Nigeria's new presumptive tax charges informal businesses 1% of turnover once yearly turnover passes about ₦12 million, from 1 January 2026, under section 29 of the Nigeria Tax Act 2025. Below that, it doesn't apply to you. Joining the system is what lets you request a TCC later.

How to get a Tax Clearance Certificate for a company (NRS Rev360)

1. Register your business with CAC if you haven't already. See our guide to CAC registration cost in Nigeria.
2. Get a Tax ID. Nigeria's TIN is now linked to your NIN. See how to get your Tax ID online if you don't have one yet.
3. Log in to Rev360 at selfservice.nrs.gov.ng. If you had a TaxPro Max account, NRS moves it over automatically and emails new login details to the address it has for you. Our Rev360 login walkthrough covers what to do if that email never arrives. Large, government and non-resident taxpayers are still on TaxPro Max until NRS extends Rev360 to them, so check which platform applies to you before you start.
4. File and pay returns for the last three years through the portal.
5. Submit your TCC request on the same platform. Rev360 brings tax registration, filing, payment, refunds and TCC applications together in one place, where they used to be separate.
6. Wait up to two weeks. By law, once the tax authority is satisfied your tax is paid (or that none is due), it must issue your certificate within two weeks of your request, or give you written reasons for refusing.

This is part of the wider changes under the Nigeria Tax Act 2025. If you haven't kept up with what else changed for workers and small businesses this year, see our breakdown of Nigeria's new tax laws.

How to get a personal Tax Clearance Certificate (Lagos LIRS example)

Personal income tax for most residents is handled by each state's own tax office rather than NRS. Lagos's LIRS is the busiest, and its eTCC process is well documented, so here it is as an example of what to expect elsewhere:

1. Log in to etax.lirs.net with your Taxpayer ID. If you don't have one, create one on the portal.
2. Keep your profile current: a recent passport photograph and your address are both required before the system will let you proceed.
3. File your yearly returns for the last three years. If you're employed, your employer's annual returns for the same years must also be filed. Missing employer returns will hold you up even if your own filing is done.
4. Wait for LIRS to assess your returns, then pay any tax due in full.
5. Click "Download TCC" on your profile. This opens a compliance checklist; you can't preview the certificate until every item on it is cleared.
6. Download the certificate. It carries a unique certificate number and a QR code, both there specifically so anyone can verify it's genuine.

If you're stuck, LIRS answers questions at etaxinfo@lirs.net or 0700-2255-5477. Every other state runs its own portal in a broadly similar way, so check with your own state's tax office for the exact website.

Scams and mistakes to avoid

• Anyone asking you to pay "to speed up" your certificate is working around the law, not with it. The law already sets a two-week deadline for issuing it. A long, unexplained delay is what's irregular, not the lack of a "fast-track fee".
• An incomplete profile is the most common hidden problem. If your passport photo, address or employer's returns aren't on file, the system won't let you preview the certificate, and it may not tell you why until you check the checklist yourself.
• A TCC doesn't excuse you from paying what you owe. It confirms that you already have. If you're informal and someone offers to "arrange" a certificate without you filing or paying anything, it won't pass the QR-code and certificate-number checks a bank or agency can run.
• If you're salaried and your employer deducts PAYE correctly, you're not shut out. Where you can show tax was already deducted at source for the years your certificate covers, the law says you can't be refused a TCC on that basis, provided any balance left after that credit is paid in full.

Frequently asked questions

How long does it take to get a Tax Clearance Certificate in Nigeria?

By law, once your returns are filed and your tax is paid or confirmed as not due, the tax office has two weeks from your request to issue the certificate, or to give you written reasons for refusing it.

Is the Tax Clearance Certificate free in Nigeria?

The certificate itself carries no official application fee from NRS or any state revenue service, as far as every source we could verify in October 2026 states. What you pay for is any outstanding tax, plus an optional consultant's fee if you hire one to handle the filing for you.

Do I need a Tax Clearance Certificate if I only earn a salary?

Yes, if an agency or bank asks for one. But the law protects you: if you can show tax was deducted from your salary for the years the certificate covers, you can't be refused a TCC for that reason, as long as any remaining balance is paid. Not sure your employer's deductions cover everything you owe? Check with our Nigeria PAYE calculator first.

Can I get a Tax Clearance Certificate without filing three years of returns?

No. The certificate has to disclose your income, tax payable, tax paid and any balance for each of the last three years of assessment, so those years need to be filed and assessed first.

What's the difference between TaxPro Max and Rev360 for getting a TCC?

Rev360 is NRS's newer platform, rolled out from 30 April 2026, which now handles TCC requests along with registration, filing, payment and refunds in one place. If you're a large, government or non-resident taxpayer, you may still be on TaxPro Max until NRS extends Rev360 to you. See our Rev360 login guide for details.

How do I check if someone's Tax Clearance Certificate is genuine?

For a Lagos-issued eTCC, check the certificate number and QR code LIRS prints on it. For certificates from NRS or another state, the safest route is to ask the bank or agency relying on it to confirm directly with the issuing authority rather than take a photocopy at face value.