The Supreme Court of Nigeria has affirmed the December 2, 2014 judgment of the Court of Appeal in Lagos, upholding the additional tax assessment of $6,927,248 imposed by the Federal Board of Inland Revenue Service (FBIRS) on the revenue of Halliburton West Africa Limited (HWAL) for the tax years 1996, 1997, 1998, and 1999.
Delivering the judgment on Friday, a five-member panel of the apex court ruled that the appeal filed by HWAL, marked SC/CV/311/2014, was without merit, reinforcing the validity of the tax assessment.
The decision underscores the court's commitment to upholding tax compliance and accountability.
In the lead judgment, Justice Emmanuel Agim found that HWAL failed to prove its assumption that its subsidiary in Nigeria had already been assessed on the same revenue and that asking it to pay the $ 6.9 million amounted to double taxation.
Justice Agim noted that both HWAL and its subsidiary in Nigeria are taxable entities, adding that there was clear evidence, particularly exhibit F, that there was no assessment of Halliburton’s subsidiary in the revenue in question.
“On the whole, this appeal fails. It lacks merit. It is accordingly dismissed. The appellant shall pay the cost of N2 million to the respondent,” Justice Agim said.