Applicability of Information & Communication Technology and its Role on Stamp Duties Administration: Evidence from Federal Inland Revenue Service

Abstract

Over the years, tax administration has been plagued with several limiting issues and factors such as tax evasion, tax avoidance, dwindling oil revenue, predominantly cash-based transactions, poor or absence of record keeping by tax offices and negative tax culture has been prevalent. These have necessitated the use of Information Technology in addressing these factors and transforming manual processes into digital forms for the purpose of efficiency and effectiveness in the tax administration process. Considering that Taxation is second to oil in revenue generation in Nigeria, Stamp Duty is considered as the new ‘oil’ for the generation of non-oil revenue. This study therefore examines the applicability of ICT and its role on Stamp Duty administration in the Federal Inland Revenue Service. The Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) was used to underpin the study and the statistical tool used in analysing the quantitative data is Stata 13 software. The study establishes that ICT plays a major role on stamp duties administration in Nigeria and thereby concludes that ICT has greatly enhanced the efficiency and effectiveness of stamp duty administration. The study therefore recommends that FIRS should invest more on improved ICT infrastructure and disruptive technologies indriving stamp duties collection, contribution and compliance. More importantly, FIRS personnel should be engaged in continuous training and retraining process at all levels of operation. Finally, tax payer education and enlightenment campaign on the use of ICT in for the purpose of paying their stamp duties is very important.