The Federal Inland Revenue Service(FIRS) urged taxpayers in the country to continue to pay their Value Added Tax (VAT) to the FIRS despite Rivers Court judgementt, to avoid facing penalties.

The FIRS issued the directive in a statement following numerous enquiries to the Service in view of a recent judgment obtained by the Rivers State Government at the Federal High Court, Port Harcourt, which ruled that states, and not the Federal Government, are constitutionally empowered to collect VAT.

The FIRS said it’s insistence to collect VAT is premises on the fact that it has already appealed the Rivers judgment where it is seeking a stay of execution order.

The FIRS statement, “We wish to inform the general public that, before the above-mentioned steps taken by the Government of Rivers State, FIRS had lodged an appeal against the above judgment and had also filed an application for stay of execution of the Judgment as well asking the Court for an injunction pending determination of the appeal.

“All parties to the suit are aware that both applications were heard on the 19th and 20th August 2021 and are awaiting the decision of the Court.

“Given that the Court of Appeal is yet to rule on the Appeal from the Judgement of Federal High Court and that the Federal High Court is yet to deliver a ruling on FIRS’s applications for stay of execution and injunction, members of the public are advised to continue to comply with their Value Added Tax obligations until the matter is resolved by the appellate courts.”