FG Directs Opay to Introduce N50 Electronic Transfer Levy on Transactions Above N10,000

Starting September 9, 2024, OPay, a fintech company in Nigeria, will implement a one-time fee of N50 on electronic transfers of N10,000 and above. This directive complies with Federal Government regulations and mandates that the levy be directly remitted to the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS).

In a notification to customers on Saturday, OPay clarified that the charge is directed entirely to the Federal Government and does not benefit the bank itself. The regulations mandate banks to deduct and remit this fee for qualifying transactions automatically. Penalties for non-compliance include hefty fines for banks that fail to collect or remit the levy as instructed by the government.

The electronic money transfer levy was introduced in 2022 by the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs. Zainab Shamsuna Ahmed. The first five months of 2024, the government reported collecting N78.95 billion from this levy. The levy initially applied to commercial banks but now involves OPay and others like Kuda Bank.

In addition to the N50 electronic transfer levy, Nigerians encounter several other charges, including a paused Cybersecurity Levy that ranges from N5 for transactions of N1,000 to N5,000 for transactions of N1,000,000. Transfer fees vary, with N10 for transactions below N5,000 and N50 for those above N50,000. SMS notifications incur a charge of N4 each unless opting for email notifications. Value Added Tax (VAT) is also levied on transaction fees. These charges add to the overall cost of electronic money transfers in Nigeria.

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