"My employer already deducts PAYE, so I don't need to do anything else." It is one of the most common assumptions about personal tax in Nigeria, and it is not quite right.
The short answer
No, PAYE alone does not cover it. Your employer's monthly deduction and remittance is one duty. Filing your own annual return with your state is a separate one, and both exist at the same time.
It surprises people because PAYE genuinely does handle the money. The tax gets deducted, sent to the right authority, and shows up correctly on your payslip. What it does not do automatically is put a return in your own name on file with your state.
What your employer's return covers
Once a year, your employer files a return of everyone's pay, listing gross pay, deductions and tax for each member of staff, due by 31 January. Our guide to the employer's annual return deadline covers that filing in full.
That return covers the company's side of the job. It is filed under the company's name, not yours, so it does not stand in for a return in your own name.
The separate duty the law places on you
Every taxable person must file a return each year, even if no tax is due. This applies to you as an individual, on top of whatever your employer files. The return is due to the tax authority of the tax authority of the state where the employee lives, by 31 March each year.
This is not a Nigerian quirk. Many countries separate "tax withheld correctly at source" from "the taxpayer's own annual reconciliation," and Nigeria's system, in force from 1 Jan 2026, works the same way.
Both returns, side by side
| Employer's return | Your own return | |
|---|---|---|
| Filed by | The company | You |
| Covers | The whole payroll | Just you |
| Deadline | 31 January | 31 March each year |
| Filed with | The relevant tax authority | The tax authority of your state of residence |
Seeing them next to each other makes the gap obvious. One exists because the company withheld tax on your behalf. The other exists because the law treats you as the person ultimately answerable for your own tax affairs.
What to do if you have never filed your own
Start by registering with your state's tax authority if you have not already, since every taxable person must register and get a Tax ID. From there, look for your state's own online portal. Our state tax portal guides cover several states' own systems.
Filing a late first return is better than never filing one, though a late return can still carry a penalty, covered in the penalty for missing your return.
Where this fits with the rest of the series
For the mechanics of filing itself, see filing your individual annual tax return. For which state to file with, start with which state you pay personal income tax to.