FG suspends implementation of controversial expatriate employment levy

The Federal Government has suspended the implementation of the recently enacted Expatriate Employment Levy by the Federal Ministry of Interior.

The President of the Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines, and Agriculture, Dele Kelvin Oye, disclosed this in a statement on Friday.

President Bola Tinubu launched the Expatriate Employment Levy (EEL) last Tuesday in Abuja.

This development however attracted widespread condemnation from different private sector groups like the Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA), Lagos Chamber Of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), and a leading economy think-tank, Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise (CPPE), amongst many others.

They argued that the introduction of the levy would impact the much-needed Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) drive by the current administration to rein in the free fall of the naira.

However, Oye said the resolution was taken following a successful Trade and Investment outreach led by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in Qatar and a productive meeting with the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Doris Aniete, and the Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo.

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The meeting was also attended by the President of the Petroleum Technology Association, the President of the Special Economic Zones Association, the Director General of the Nigerian Turkiye Business Council, the European Union Trade delegation head, the NACCIMA Chair of Digital Trade Group, and the representatives of the National Association of Small and Medium Scale Enterprises.

The statement read: “The Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines, and Agriculture, in collaboration with key stakeholders, announces a temporary step down of the recently enacted Expatriate Employment Levy by the Federal Ministry of Interior, as administered by the Nigerian Immigration Service.”

“It was unanimously agreed that the implementation of the Expatriate Employment Levy will be paused, allowing for further consultations with NACCIMA and other vital stakeholders.

“A joint committee comprising members of the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, the Ministry of Interior, NACCIMA, and other stakeholders will be formed to review the EEL policy. The rollout of the EEL, as initially proposed, will be deferred in accordance with the resolutions made.”