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Nigeria Company Capital Gains Tax Calculator

Capital gains tax on company disposals at the prevailing 30% CIT rate.

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Company capital gains at the prevailing CIT rate.

Capital gains tax

Chargeable gain

Net gain after tax

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The 10 percent era is over

For decades a Nigerian company that sold an asset at a profit paid a flat 10 percent capital gains tax, and finance teams treated that low rate as a planning gift. The 2025 tax reform changed the rule. Chargeable gains made by a company no longer sit in their own cheap bucket. They are now taxed at the prevailing Companies Income Tax rate, which means the gain on a disposal is treated much like ordinary profit. This calculator reflects that shift: it takes your sale proceeds, subtracts your cost base, and applies the prevailing company rate to whatever profit remains.

The rate this tool applies is 30 percent, mirroring the headline CIT rate. That is a meaningful jump from the old 10 percent, and it is the single most important thing for a company owner or finance lead to understand before signing a sale agreement. Because the reform is still phasing in and the headline company rate can itself be reduced by presidential order, confirm the rate that applies to your disposal date with the FIRS, now reorganised as the Nigeria Revenue Service, before you file.

A note on what this calculator does and does not do

This tool applies the 30 percent rate to the gain regardless of how large or small the selling company is. That is a deliberate simplification of the disposal arithmetic, so do not assume a tiny company automatically escapes the charge here. Whether your specific company qualifies for any relief or a different treatment is a question for your tax adviser and the revenue service, not something the headline figure on this page settles.

Why your cost base is the number that matters

The tax is charged on the gain, not the sale price, and the gain is proceeds minus your cost base. Getting that cost base right is where companies leave money on the table or overpay. The cost base is not just the original purchase price. It can include the incidental costs of acquiring the asset and, in principle, allowable expenditure that enhanced its value. Legal fees on the original purchase, professional valuation costs, and capital improvements to a property are the kinds of items that belong in the cost base if your records support them.

A practical tip drawn from how these disposals actually go wrong: keep the paper trail. If you bought a warehouse, renovated it, and sold it years later, the renovation invoices reduce your taxable gain. Lose those invoices and the revenue service will tax you as though the improvement never happened. The cost base field in this calculator is where all of that allowable cost should be summed before you read the result.

Selling an asset bought at NGN 30 million for NGN 50 million

Work through the default scenario. Your company sells an asset for NGN 50 million. Its cost base, including the original price and allowable acquisition costs, is NGN 30 million. The chargeable gain is the difference, NGN 20 million. Using the rate this calculator applies, that gain is taxed at 30 percent, producing a capital gains tax of NGN 6 million and leaving a net gain after tax of NGN 14 million.

Under the old 10 percent rule the tax on that same gain would have been just NGN 2 million. The reform triples the bill on this disposal, which is exactly why timing and cost-base accuracy now carry real weight.

Is the capital gains tax separate from the company's normal income tax bill?

The gain is taxed at the same rate as company profit, but it is calculated on the specific disposal rather than on trading results. In practice a finance team folds the chargeable gain into the company's tax computation for the year. This tool isolates the disposal so you can see the tax that the sale alone triggers.

What if the asset sold for less than it cost?

Then there is no chargeable gain and no capital gains tax on that disposal. The calculator floors the gain at zero, so entering proceeds below your cost base returns a tax of NGN 0. Capital losses may interact with your wider tax position, which is a matter to raise with your adviser and the revenue service.

Does this cover the sale of shares in another company?

Share disposals have their own reliefs in Nigerian law, including potential relief where proceeds are reinvested. This tool computes the headline gain at the company rate and does not model those share-specific exemptions, so treat it as a starting estimate and confirm the position with the FIRS for any equity disposal.

Frequently asked questions

How are company capital gains taxed in Nigeria in 2026?
Under the Nigeria Tax Act 2025 there is no longer a flat 10 percent capital gains tax. For companies, chargeable gains are taxed at the prevailing Companies Income Tax rate, currently 30 percent. The gain is the disposal proceeds less the cost base and allowable expenses.
What counts as an allowable cost base for a company asset disposal in Nigeria?
The cost base includes the original acquisition price of the asset plus incidental costs of purchase such as legal fees and professional valuations. Capital expenditure that enhanced the value of the asset, for example structural improvements to a property, is also allowable if supported by documentation. Keeping invoices and contracts from the time of acquisition is the most practical way to protect a full cost base claim when the Nigeria Revenue Service reviews a disposal.
Does the 30 percent rate apply to a company selling shares in another company?
Share disposals are subject to the same headline CIT rate under the 2025 reforms, but Nigerian tax law provides specific reliefs for equity transactions, including relief where disposal proceeds are reinvested in qualifying assets within a defined period. This calculator applies the 30 percent rate to the gross gain and does not model those share-specific exemptions. For any equity disposal you should confirm the applicable treatment with the Nigeria Revenue Service or a qualified tax adviser before filing.
When must a company remit capital gains tax to the Nigeria Revenue Service?
Capital gains arising to a company are reported as part of the company income tax computation for the relevant accounting period. The tax is payable under the same self-assessment regime that governs Companies Income Tax, with the return due within six months of the end of the accounting year. Companies with a January to December year-end therefore face a June 30 filing and payment deadline. Penalties and interest apply to late returns and underpayments, so timing the disposal to align with available cash for the tax settlement is a practical planning consideration.

Related calculators

Sources

  1. FIRS — Personal Income Tax (PAYE), Federal Inland Revenue Service, Nigeria
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