No, Tinubu’s government hasn’t introduced 5% surcharge on petrol products from January 2026
IN SHORT: Multiple Facebook posts claim that Nigerian president Bola Tinubu’s administration has introduced a 5% fuel surcharge starting January 2026, along with new tax laws. But the charge is not new, and it won’t necessarily take effect in January.
A number of Nigerians have raised concerns about a 5% surcharge on petroleum products mentioned in section 159 of the Nigeria Tax Act 2025.
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One post circulating on Facebook in Nigeria reads: “BREAKING NEWS: Nigerians Will Pay N500 as Tax on Every N10,000 They Spend on Petrol Consumption Starting From January 2026 Under the New Tinubu Tax Law.”
In June 2025, president Bola Tinubu signed four tax reform bills into law. The Nigeria Tax Act 2025 was one of them. The federal government has announced that the new tax laws will come into effect on 1 January 2026.
As a result, many Nigerians believed that Tinubu’s administration introduced the 5% fuel surcharge and that it will also take effect in January.
The claim also appears here, here and here. (Note: See more instances at the end of this report.)
But will Nigerians pay a 5% surcharge on petroleum products from January? We checked.
The charge was introduced 18 years ago
In a post on X, the chairperson of the Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms, Taiwo Oyedele, debunked the claim that the fuel surcharge was introduced by Tinubu’s administration.
“This note seeks to clarify matters arising regarding the 5% fuel surcharge in the new tax laws. The charge is not a new tax introduced by the current administration. The provision already exists under the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (Amendment) Act, 2007. Its restatement in the new Tax Act is for harmonisation and transparency rather than immediate implementation,” he said.
Oyedele also said that petroleum products such as household kerosene, cooking gas and compressed natural gas were exempt from the surcharge.
Take-off date not January 2026
Oyedele said it was up to Nigeria’s finance minister to determine when the surcharge would come into effect.
“No. The surcharge does not take effect automatically with the new tax laws. It will only commence when the Minister of Finance issues an order published in the Official Gazette as stated under Chapter 7 of the Nigeria Tax Act, 2025. This safeguard ensures careful consideration of timing and economic conditions before implementation,” Oyedele wrote on X.
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He also debunked the claim in a video produced by the Nigerian presidency.
In the video, he says: “It does not take effect as of January 2026. I know some people have been giving wrong information about this. What is in the new task law is that this surcharge will take effect on a date in the future, based on an order to be released by the minister of finance. And we do know that minister of finance is responsible enough to determine when it’s appropriate to do so.”
The claim that Nigerians will pay a 5% surcharge on petroleum products from January 2026 is misleading.
The same claim was found here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here.
