The Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) has directed all large taxpayers to fully adopt the National E-Invoicing and Electronic Fiscal System (EFS) by July 31, 2026, warning that companies that fail to comply risk regulatory sanctions.
The directive was announced in a statement issued on Sunday by Dare Adekanmbi, the Special Adviser on Media to the NRS Chairman, following an earlier public notice signed by NRS Chairman Zacch Adedeji.
According to the agency, the deadline marks the end of the transition period for large taxpayers and signals the commencement of full enforcement of the electronic invoicing regime.
Adekanmbi said the NRS has already begun monitoring compliance among large taxpayers to assess their level of readiness and adherence to the new requirements.
He warned that businesses that fail to complete the onboarding process and begin transmitting electronic invoices before the deadline could face enforcement actions under existing tax laws.
“The Nigeria Revenue Service has set a July 31 deadline for all large taxpayers to wholly adopt the national e-invoicing and electronic fiscal system,” the statement said.
“The NRS has already commenced compliance monitoring activities, and any defaulting taxpayer may be subjected to appropriate regulatory and enforcement actions in accordance with the relevant tax laws and regulations.”
The agency urged affected companies to complete all outstanding onboarding, integration, validation and testing processes without delay.
The directive applies to large taxpayers, defined by the NRS as businesses with an annual gross turnover of N5 billion or more.
To achieve full compliance, companies must:
- Complete onboarding on the Merchant Buyer Solution (MBS) platform.
- Integrate their systems through approved Access Point Providers (APPs) or Systems Integrators (SIs).
- Complete all validation and testing requirements.
- Begin transmitting invoices electronically to the NRS platform in line with approved standards.
The agency also advised businesses to ensure they receive only compliant electronic invoices carrying valid Invoice Reference Numbers (RINs) from suppliers.
According to the NRS, over 1,000 companies had completed the e-invoicing onboarding process by the first quarter of 2026.
The agency said it remains committed to providing technical support to taxpayers to ensure the successful implementation of the national e-invoicing framework.
The National E-Invoicing and Electronic Fiscal System, also known as the Merchant Buyer Solution (MBS), was introduced as part of the government’s efforts to modernise tax administration, improve transparency and strengthen voluntary tax compliance.
The phased rollout began with stakeholder consultations and pilot deployments in January 2025, while the system officially went live for large taxpayers on August 1, 2025.
Although the implementation timeline was later extended to allow businesses more time to prepare, the July 31, 2026 deadline marks the end of the transition period.
With compliance monitoring already underway, the NRS says it is now shifting its focus from implementation to enforcement as it seeks to strengthen tax administration and improve revenue collection through a fully digital invoicing system.
