Stamping business contracts in Nigeria
Which of a Nigerian business's contracts must be stamped, the fixed N1,000 duty on agreements, who pays, the 30-day deadline, and NRS or State.
By Achekam · · 4 min read · For Running a business businesses in Nigeria
A Nigerian business signs contracts all year: a maintenance agreement with a facilities company, a consulting engagement with a client, a software licence, a lease of equipment. Very few of them get stamped. Stamp duty is thought of as something for property deeds and large loans, not for the ordinary paperwork of trading.
The NRS sees it differently. Its 2026 circular on dutiable instruments sets a fixed duty on agreements in general, with a short list of exceptions. This article explains which contracts are caught, who pays, the deadline, whether the NRS or a State collects, and how to make stamping part of signing rather than an afterthought.
Which instruments are dutiable
The NRS's Information Circular No. 2026/04 explains the charging rule in section 123 of the Nigeria Tax Act, 2025. Duty, at a fixed or an ad valorem rate, attaches to an instrument first signed in Nigeria. It also attaches to one signed abroad if it concerns property located in Nigeria or something done here.
That reach is wide. A contract signed by e-mail with a foreign supplier for services performed in Lagos is within it. So is a contract signed in Nigeria for work done anywhere.
The fixed duty on agreements
According to the circular, every kind of agreement or contract carries a fixed duty of N1,000, and the beneficiary of the service is the one who pays it. Three exceptions follow:
- a contract whose subject value is below 1,000,000;
- a contract to hire a worker, which the circular lists as a labourer, employee, artificer, manufacturer or menial servant;
- a contract selling goods, wares or merchandise, hire purchase included.
So employment contracts are out, as are contracts for selling goods. Small agreements below the value line are out. Most service agreements, consultancy engagements, maintenance contracts and similar arrangements above that value are in.
Who pays: the beneficiary of the service
The duty is payable by the beneficiary of the service, a point PwC's summary of the Nigeria Tax Act repeats. That cuts both ways for a business:
| Your position | Who is the beneficiary | Who pays |
|---|---|---|
| You hire a cleaning or IT support company | Your business | Your business |
| You provide consulting to a client | The client | The client |
| You lease equipment to a customer | Ask your adviser how the lease is classed | Depends on the answer |
When you are the provider, it is still worth reminding the client in the contract that the duty is theirs, so the document gets stamped.
Within 30 days of execution
The NRS gives whoever owes the duty 30 days from execution to get an instrument signed in Nigeria stamped. A contract signed on the first of the month has to be stamped by the end of it. Diary the date the day the last party signs.
NRS or the State?
The circular divides the work by who signs. Where a company deals with another company, an individual, a group of people or any other corporate body, the NRS charges and collects the duty. Where the parties are individuals, partnerships, groups of people or unincorporated businesses, with no company involved, the State tax authority, or the FCT's, administers it.
Put simply:
- A company is a party: the NRS.
- No company is a party, for example a sole trader contracting with an individual: the State or FCT tax authority.
A business run as a registered business name rather than a company should check which side of that line each of its contracts falls on.
E-stamping and keeping the copy together
The NRS says stamp duty may be denoted by tax stamps, die impression, electronic or digital tagging, electronic receipt or issue of a certificate, and that e-stamping is encouraged. Its stamp duties page explains what stamp duty covers and how it can be denoted, including e-stamping.
E-stamping fits naturally with contracts that are signed electronically. Achekam can send any contract out for e-signature: you place the signature and initial boxes, choose whether people sign one after another or together, and set an expiry date and reminders. When everyone has signed, the signed PDF comes back into Documents with a completion certificate beside it.
The weak point is what happens next. A contract is signed, then stamped somewhere else, and the stamped version, the e-stamp certificate and the signed copy end up in three different places. Achekam's Document Centre organises files in folders, lets you tag and search them, and keeps older versions when you add a new one. Upload the stamped version as a new version of the signed contract, and keep the stamping certificate or receipt in the same folder. Anyone who opens the contract later sees both, and the history shows when each arrived.
A signing-to-stamping routine
- Before signing, decide whether the contract is dutiable and who the beneficiary of the service is.
- Note in the contract which party will stamp it.
- Send it for signature and diary 30 days from the last signature.
- Stamp it with the NRS or the State, by e-stamping where possible.
- File the stamped version and certificate with the signed contract.
- Tag the contract as stamped, so a search can show any that are not.
What happens to contracts that miss the deadline, including their use as evidence, is covered in what happens if you don't stamp a document. The separate duty on electronic receipts of money is explained in stamp duty on electronic transfers.
General guidance only, not advice on your own circumstances. Tax and payroll rules change: check the current position with the authority or your adviser.
