Residents in Kogi State are now to pay ground rent as part of the taxes paid to the state Government.
The Chairman of the Kogi State Internal Revenue Service (KGSIRS), Alhaji Sule Enehe, disclosed this at a stakeholders’ engagement on the implementation of the Land Use Charge Law, 2024, held at the KGSIRS office in Lokoja.
Enehe said the KGSIRS had organised teams of house enumerators, ready to be deployed across the 21 Local Government Areas (LGAs) of the state, adding that the new ground rent was part of ongoing tax reforms aimed at streamlining revenue collection, promoting transparency, and ensuring all stakeholders contributed their fair share to the state’s development.
He said the KGSIRS had been collecting tenement rates on behalf of local governments, but the collection of ground rent had not yet been enforced.
Enehe encouraged the council chairmen to collaborate with the KGSIRS in making the law’s implementation a resounding success for the state’s future.
CEO of New Wave Echo System, Femi Williams, said the law will boost the state’s revenue, adding that the Land Use Charge had been used by other states for more than 15 years to strengthen their revenue bases.
Government-owned properties for public purposes, places of worship, educational institutions, and healthcare facilities are exempted in the law.
