Customs rakes in N4.03trn, targets N11trn revenue in 2026

The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) generated N4.03 trillion in revenue in the first half of 2026, putting the agency on course to surpass its N11.074 trillion full-year target as automation and intelligence-led enforcement boost collections while reducing leakages across Nigeria’s borders.

The first-half performance represents about 36.4 per cent of the annual target, leaving Customs with N7.04 trillion to generate between July and December to meet its 2026 revenue goal.

The Comptroller-General of Customs, Dr Adewale Adeniyi, attributed the stronger revenue performance to the Service’s deliberate move away from manual processes and officers’ discretion towards standardised rules, automated valuation references, risk-based systems and data-driven enforcement.

Adeniyi said the reforms were enabling Customs to increase government revenue without imposing additional burdens on compliant businesses.

“Modernisation within the Service is aimed at replacing officers’ discretion with standardised rules, risk-based systems, automated valuation references, and data-driven targeting to reduce vulnerability in customs operations,” he said.

“We removed human discretion, deployed technology, and built trust with compliant traders. When you do that, revenue will grow exponentially without hurting business,” he added.

The performance places Customs at the centre of the Federal Government’s broader drive to strengthen non-oil revenue and improve the efficiency of trade-related collections at a time when fiscal pressures remain high.

Customs had generated N3.35 trillion between January and May, meaning collections accelerated by about N680 billion in June alone, based on the latest figures released by the Service.

The N4.03 trillion six-month collection also means the Service has already generated more than half of the N6.584 trillion revenue target set for 2025, which it eventually surpassed by collecting N7.277 trillion during the year.

For 2026, Customs is targeting N11.074 trillion, representing an increase of about 68.2 per cent over its 2025 target.

The target comprises N5.542 trillion for the Federation Account, N1.491 trillion from non-Federation revenue, N2.773 trillion from Import VAT and N1.266 trillion from the four per cent Free-on-Board levy.

The Senate approved the NCS’s 2026 budget on July 8, backing the N11.074 trillion revenue target alongside an expenditure estimate of N1.295 trillion.

The latest revenue performance therefore gives Customs a stronger starting point for achieving the ambitious target, although it would need to average about N1.17 trillion monthly during the second half of the year to reach the full-year projection.

Beyond revenue collection, Adeniyi said the Service was increasingly using its border-control mandate to support trade facilitation, national economic planning and national security.

“The Nigeria Customs Service is not just about collecting duties. We are facilitators of trade, generators of data for national planning, and gatekeepers against smuggling,” he said.

A major component of the reform is the use of Time Release Studies to measure the period required to clear cargo at ports and borders.

The initiative is designed to identify bottlenecks, reduce clearance delays and lower the cost of moving goods through Nigeria’s trade corridors.

For importers and manufacturers, faster clearance could reduce demurrage, storage expenses and other logistics costs, while more predictable customs procedures could improve the efficiency of supply chains.

The Service has also intensified intelligence-led enforcement through geospatial intelligence, digital surveillance and greater inter-agency coordination.

The approach is intended to shift Customs away from broad physical interventions towards targeted enforcement based on data and risk assessment.

This could become increasingly important as the government seeks to balance higher revenue mobilisation with the need to protect legitimate trade and prevent additional costs from being passed on to businesses and consumers.

Adeniyi said Customs had also begun reviewing policies that could affect the efficiency of revenue collection and the wider trading environment.

The Service recently urged the National Assembly to reconsider Nigeria’s import waiver and concession regime, questioning whether the incentives still justify their fiscal cost and remain aligned with the economic objectives for which they were introduced.

The Comptroller-General has also called for a post-implementation review of the Nigeria Customs Service Act 2023, arguing that three years of implementation had provided sufficient operational experience to identify areas requiring refinement.

The push for policy reform comes as Customs assumes a larger role in the government’s fiscal strategy.

The N11.074 trillion target means the Service is expected to generate a substantial portion of government revenue from trade-related activities, making the efficiency of customs administration increasingly important to the country’s fiscal position.

The challenge, however, will be to sustain the revenue gains without allowing higher collections to translate into higher costs for businesses.

The Service’s emphasis on automation therefore represents more than a technological upgrade. It is becoming a central part of the government’s strategy to expand revenue while improving the ease and predictability of doing business.

If Customs sustains its current collection trajectory and closes existing leakages, the agency could deliver a significant boost to government revenue in 2026 while simultaneously strengthening Nigeria’s trade infrastructure.

The bigger economic test will be whether the reforms can produce a customs system that collects more revenue, clears cargo faster, reduces opportunities for leakages and supports rather than constrains legitimate commerce.

That balance will determine whether Customs’ revenue surge becomes a one-off fiscal gain or the foundation for a more efficient and commercially competitive Nigerian trading system.