On the 13th, the Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Xu Zhengyu, held an online bilateral meeting with Taiwo Oyedele, the Minister of Finance and Economic Coordination of Nigeria. Both sides represented the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government and signed a comprehensive double taxation avoidance agreement with the Nigerian government. This is the 59th comprehensive agreement signed by Hong Kong and the fourth one within 2026.
According to the agreement, taxes paid by Hong Kong residents in Nigeria can be offset against taxes levied by Hong Kong on the same income under the Inland Revenue Ordinance (Chapter 112). In addition, Nigeria's withholding tax rate on dividends and interest for Hong Kong residents, as well as royalties for Hong Kong companies, will be reduced from 10% to 7.5%.
Xu Zhengyu said that Nigeria is a participant in the the Belt and Road Initiative and an important trade partner of Hong Kong in Africa. The continuous expansion of the agreement network in Hong Kong will provide stronger tax certainty for Hong Kong based enterprises when expanding their business overseas, avoid double taxation, and encourage them to manage funds, allocate assets, and control risks in Hong Kong.