By Mahmoud Muhammad Bureau Chief North-West
Kano State has officially banned cash and cheque payments for taxes starting January 1 2026.
The move, announced by Muhammad Abba Aliyu, Executive Director of Compliance and Enforcement at the Kano State Internal Revenue Service (KIRS), is aimed at curbing revenue leakages and boosting transparency through digital‑based collection systems.
Aliyu highlighted that digitising tax payments helped one agency raise its revenue from ₦50 million to ₦500 million, which convinced the government to eliminate the old‑school cash/cheque option.
The ban is part of a broader tax‑reform push that also hands over federal‑level tax collection to a new Nigerian Revenue Service, covering federal, state and local taxes.
Officials say the shift will make it harder for “linkages” (i.e., informal channels that siphon off funds) to operate and should improve the state’s internally‑generated revenue.
About The Author
