The federal government has made it illegal to pay taxes with cash and told Ministries, Departments, and Agencies to set up Point of Sale terminals within 45 days.
Our correspondent got the directive today as part of four Treasury circulars sent out by the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation.
The PUNCH says that the Accountant-General, Shamseldeen Ogunjimi, indicated in the documents that all payments to the federal government must henceforth be made electronically and sent through routes that the Treasury has approved.
The circular said, “All payments to the government must be made through electronic channels approved by the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation and added to the right Treasury Single Account.” It further said that cash payments are no longer allowed.
“Because of the above, it is now illegal for anyone to collect or accept cash (in Naira or other currencies) for any money owed to the Federal Government.
The circular said, “All revenue collections, for and on behalf of the federal government, must be made via electronic processing.”
The first circular, which was sent out on November 24, 2025, was called “Enforcement of No Physical Cash Receipt Policy for All Federal Government Revenue Transactions.” It said that the government was worried about the “continued physical cash collection” at MDA revenue points, even though there were already rules in place for e-payment and the Treasury Single Account.
It claimed that collecting cash in person went against current rules and “weakens the integrity of federal government e-collection and e-payment systems.”
The circular told all MDAs and Federal Government-Owned Enterprises to quickly inform their employees and the public about the restriction. It also told them to put up signs at all revenue collecting sites saying “NO PHYSICAL CASH RECEIPT” and “NO CASH PAYMENT.”
It also said that any MDA that is currently collecting cash must set up working POS terminals or other certified electronic devices at all locations within 45 days.
To make sure everyone followed the rules, it said that accounting officers would be held responsible for any violations.
Another circular, dated November 25, 2025, and headlined Immediate Cessation of Direct Deductions on MDAs’ Dedicated Collection Systems, was about MDAs making unauthorized deductions through custom payment platforms.
The document says that the Treasury saw that MDAs were utilizing front-end applications that were linked to several Payment Solution Service Providers. These applications took off charges, fees, and commissions before sending the net amount to the Treasury Single Account.
It noted that the approach broke the law and caused “significant revenue leakages,” which made it harder for the federal government to be open about its finances.
The circular said that all revenues must be sent to the right TSA or Sub-TSA accounts “without any deduction(s).”
It made it clear that all costs for services must now be paid straight from Treasury funds instead of being taken out at the source.
The OAGF must also regularize all existing portals and PSSPs used to collect money by December 31, 2025. The Treasury told MDAs that were part of public-private partnerships to get more advice from them.
The document said that MDAs that didn’t follow the rules would lose access to the Government Integrated Financial Management Information System and TSA accounts.
The third circular, which was sent out on November 26, 2025, and was called “Adoption of the Federal Treasury e-Receipt (FTe-R),” set up a national e-receipt system that everyone had to use.
The circular claimed that starting on January 1, 2026, the Federal Treasury would start sending out a single electronic receipt for all government payments. The only legitimate proof of federal transactions would be the centrally-issued FTe-R.
The circular said, “The Treasury will start issuing FTe-R on January 1, 2026.” The Revenue Optimization (RevOP) platform will send out the receipts electronically through channels that each MDA chooses. The FTe-R will be both a receipt for the person who paid and verification that the government body collected the money.
The fourth circular, which came out on November 27, 2025, was called “Rollout and Implementation Guidelines on the Adoption of the Revenue Optimisation (RevOP) Platform.”
It added that the government was now using a digital platform to make revenue collections more visible, make billing easier, and let MDAs see their accounts in real time. RevOP is now the official service-wide platform for optimizing revenue from start to finish.
The document says that it will automate billing, reconciliation, and treasury visibility in a single system and work with TSA, GIFMIS, CBN, NIBSS, FIRS, and banks that receive income.
Within seven working days, each MDA must choose three officers to be the RevOP focal point and make sure that the platform works with the financial systems that are already in place.
The circular further said that only PSSPs that the Central Bank had licensed, NITDA had advised, and the OAGF had approved would be able to run. All PSSPs that MDAs utilize now must connect to the platform for “instant harmonization of Government collections.”
The Treasury also told MDAs to send in full information about all of their local and foreign currency accounts and make sure they did so within 60 days.
Ogunjimi signed all four circulars and told accounting officials, finance directors, and internal auditors to make sure the letters were widely distributed and followed exactly.
The steps are some of the biggest changes to how the federal government collects money since the Treasury Single Account was set up ten years ago.
Earlier reports said that the federal government had launched a new payment system called the Treasury Management & Revenue Assurance System. This system is meant to make it easier to collect and manage federal revenue payments across MDAs, including those that get money from donors, trust funds, social security funds, and special funds.
Our reporter saw a memo that said the first phase solely covers payments and collections for the naira part.
It also lets the OAGF and MDAs make bank statements, keep track of balances, and set up automatic tax deductions and payments for vendor and contractor payments, such as VAT, Withholding Tax, and Stamp Duty.
The second phase, which is set to start on June 1, 2025, will include collections and payments that include foreign exchange and linking with MDA Enterprise Resource Planning systems.
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