E-Governance: Enhancing Tax Compliance in Nigeria

The purpose of governance is to make life manageable for the citizens through the provisions of basic social amenities, including the security of life and property. To accomplish these objectives, the government needs to raise revenue through taxation. However, the twin-problems of tax evasion and corruption often affect the ability of the government to generate revenue. In a determined effort to increase tax compliance such that it can raise enough revenue to execute its projects, the government adopted e-taxation as a component of its e-governance initiative in line with global best practices. This study seeks to determine the effectiveness of e-governance in Nigeria and how it has improved tax compliance. The paper adopted qualitative research methods, making use of secondary data which involves extensive literature review of articles, journals, periodicals, reports and relevant tax laws. The study revealed that e-taxation is not only convenient but it has also helped to reduce calculation errors on tax returns filed by taxpayers, minimize revenue leakages and fraud, eliminate reconciliation challenges, increase the amount of revenue generated, save time and cost for taxpayers. The study therefore recommends that tax administrators at all levels of governance should implement e-taxation, and embark on more citizen training on the importance of shifting from manual taxation to electronic taxation. With increased taxpayer knowledge, the level of tax compliance will continuously increase with a positive impact on tax revenue generation. Key Words: Governance, E-Governance, e-Taxation, Tax evasion, Tax Complianc