Nigeria’s VAT Collections Rise to ₦2.28 Trillion in Q3 2025, Manufacturing Leads
VAT Collections Report Strong Growth in Q3 2025 as Manufacturing Tops Contributors
Nigeria’s Value Added Tax (VAT) collections increased to ₦2.28 trillion in the third quarter (Q3 2025), reflecting continued resilience in domestic economic activity and stronger tax receipts across key sectors, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) latest quarterly report. The figure represents a 10.66 percent quarter-on-quarter rise from ₦2.06 trillion recorded in Q2 2025.
Quarterly Growth and Sectoral Breakdown
The NBS report shows that the VAT performance in Q3 2025 benefited from sustained economic activity across local, foreign, and import-related transactions. Local VAT payments accounted for ₦1.12 trillion, while foreign and import VAT contributed ₦680.23 billion and ₦479.79 billion, respectively.
On a year-on-year basis, total VAT collections for Q3 2025 increased by approximately 28.10 percent compared to the same period in 2024, indicating broader growth in taxable consumption and economic transactions.
Manufacturing and Sector Contributions
The latest VAT data highlights the manufacturing sector as the leading contributor to total VAT revenue in the quarter, accounting for 25.89 percent of the total receipts. Other significant contributors included:
Information and communication -18.77 percent
Mining and quarrying -14.85 percent
These contributions reflect the relative strength of productive and service sectors that generate taxable goods and services, underpinning overall revenue performance.
Uneven Sectoral Growth
Additional variance was observed in sectoral growth rates on a quarter-on-quarter basis:
Administrative and support service activities recorded the highest growth at 89.28 percent.
Arts, entertainment and recreation grew by 82.49 percent, and human health and social work activities increased by 32.40 percent.
In contrast, real estate activities declined by 51.33 percent, while household-related economic activities and other service segments also contracted during the quarter.
These mixed outcomes highlight evolving dynamics across Nigeria’s economy, where certain segments expand rapidly while others face slower activity or contraction.
Implications for Government Revenue and Policy
Value Added Tax remains a critical source of non-oil revenue for Nigeria’s federal, state, and local governments, contributing substantially to government receipts outside petroleum-related income. Higher VAT collections signal strengthened economic activity, improved tax compliance, and expanding taxable transaction bases, factors that support fiscal planning and public expenditure frameworks.
The sectoral mix of contributions also provides policymakers with insights into where economic momentum is concentrated, informing potential focus areas for growth stimulation and revenue enhancement.
The increase in VAT collections to ₦2.28 trillion in Q3 2025 underscores resilient consumption and productive activity in Nigeria’s economy. With significant contributions from manufacturing, information & communication, and mining sectors, the Q3 VAT performance reflects a diversified basis of taxable activity and growing compliance.
However, the contrasting performance across sectors such as real estate and household services suggests structural imbalances that may warrant tailored policy responses to sustain broad-based economic growth and tax-revenue expansion in future quarters.
