Stamp Duty on Bank Transfer in Nigeria Explained

You send ₦20,000 to a friend at another bank. The transfer goes through, and then a second, smaller debit appears on your statement. The description says "stamp duty", "SD charge", or something close.

If you have been banking in Nigeria for a few years, this probably confuses you twice over. You remember stamp duty as something that came off money you received. So why is it now leaving with money you send?

The short answer: the law changed. From 1 January 2026, the ₦50 charge moved from the receiver to the sender. This guide explains what stamp duty on bank transfers in Nigeria is, how it works now, which transfers are exempt, and exactly what to do if you think a deduction is wrong.

What Stamp Duty on Bank Transfer in Nigeria Means

Stamp duty is a tax. It has existed in Nigeria for a long time. The original idea was simple: when you signed an important document like a contract or receipt, the government charged a small fee and stamped the document to show the tax had been paid.

That physical stamp is largely gone now. But the tax has not disappeared — it has moved into the digital banking system.

The Finance Acts of 2019 and 2020 extended stamp duty to electronic transactions, which is how the familiar ₦50 deduction on bank transfers began. In 2026, Nigeria's tax reform laws took over: the Nigeria Tax Act 2025, which came into force on 1 January 2026, now sets the rules, and the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) — the agency that replaced the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) — collects it.

When you see "stamp duty", "SD charge", "electronic money transfer levy", or "govt levy" on a statement, this is what it refers to. It is a statutory charge your bank is legally required to collect and pass on to the government. It is a tax — not a service charge, not a processing fee.

Is Stamp Duty a Bank Charge or a Government Levy?

It is a government levy. This distinction matters more than it might seem.

When your bank charges you a transfer fee or an SMS alert fee, that money goes to the bank. It is paying for something the bank provides. Those charges are worth understanding too — see our guide to bank charges in Nigeria for the current fee bands.

Stamp duty is different. Your bank identifies the qualifying transfer, deducts the amount automatically, and remits it to the NRS. The bank's role is purely that of a collection agent.

This is why, if you call your bank to complain about stamp duty, they can explain it but cannot waive a correctly applied charge the way they might reverse an error on a service fee.

Who Pays Stamp Duty on Transfers Now (2026)

Here is the rule as it stands:

• Amount: ₦50 per qualifying transfer.
• Threshold: electronic transfers of ₦10,000 or more.
• Who pays: the sender. Since 1 January 2026, the charge is deducted from the account that sends the money, not the one that receives it.
• Who collects: your bank, on behalf of the Nigeria Revenue Service.

Before 2026, it worked the other way round. The ₦50 was an "electronic receipt" charge, so the person receiving ₦10,000 or more saw the deduction. If you remember being charged after a credit alert, that was the old rule. If you see a stamp duty deduction after receiving money in 2026, ask your bank to check it.

Which Transfers Are Exempt

Not every transfer attracts stamp duty. Under the current rules, banks generally do not charge it on:

• Transfers below ₦10,000.
• Salary payments. Employers paying wages are generally exempt.
• Transfers between your own accounts at the same bank, for example from your current account to your savings account.

Each bank implements these exemptions through its own systems, and some describe them more narrowly than others. One fintech, for example, exempts transfers between a customer's own personal accounts and between business accounts that belong to the same business. If you regularly move money between your own accounts, check your bank's help pages or ask customer care how they apply the exemption.

How Stamp Duty Adds to Your Transfer Fee

Stamp duty sits on top of your bank's own transfer fee. The two are separate charges that often arrive as separate debit lines.

Under the CBN's revised 2026 Guide to Charges, interbank electronic transfers are priced in three bands: free up to ₦5,000, ₦10 from ₦5,000 to ₦50,000, and ₦50 above ₦50,000. Put that together with stamp duty and a transfer to another bank looks like this:

Some banks also add VAT (7.5%) to their own transfer fee. Check your bank's published tariff for the exact figures it applies.

A practical tip: because stamp duty is a flat ₦50 per transfer, sending one ₦30,000 transfer costs less than sending three separate ₦10,000 transfers to the same person (₦60 in total instead of ₦180).

Why Stamp Duty Appears on Your Account Statement

Your bank's system is configured to identify transfers that meet the qualifying criteria. When you send a qualifying amount, the system calculates and deducts the levy automatically — no manual decision, no discretion.

The label on your statement varies from bank to bank:

• Stamp duty
• SD charge
• Electronic money transfer levy (EMTL)
• Govt levy / stamp duty

Different labels, same charge. If you see a ₦50 deduction right after sending ₦10,000 or more, that is almost certainly what it is.

If you are not sure how to read the other entries on your statement, our guide to understanding all the bank charges on your account explains them one by one.

What to Do If You Think Stamp Duty Was Deducted Wrongly

Errors do happen. Stamp duty can be applied incorrectly — for example, on a transfer below ₦10,000, on an exempt transfer between your own accounts, twice on the same transfer, or on money you received after the January 2026 change.

Here is a clear path if you think something went wrong:

Step 1: Pull the details before you call

Note the exact date, the transfer amount, the account it went to, and the stamp duty amount deducted. Confirm whether the transfer was ₦10,000 or more and whether it was to your own account. Having these specifics ready makes the conversation faster.

Step 2: Contact your bank first

Your bank can look at the transaction directly and explain why the deduction was triggered. Ask which transfer triggered it, whether it met the threshold, and whether any exemption should have applied.

Step 3: Ask for a complaint reference number

If customer care cannot resolve it immediately, ask for a formal complaint and a tracking number. CBN guidance expects banks to acknowledge complaints and issue a reference quickly, and to resolve most within about two weeks.

Step 4: Escalate to the CBN Consumer Protection Department

If the bank does not resolve it, you can escalate to the Central Bank of Nigeria's consumer protection department by email at cpd@cbn.gov.ng or by letter to any CBN branch. Include your bank's complaint reference number and copies of your statement.

If you have faced a debit you did not recognise at all, our guide on what to do after an unauthorized debit walks through the full dispute process.

Step 5: Ask the NRS about policy questions

If your question is about whether a type of transaction should attract stamp duty at all, rather than a specific error, that is a policy question for the Nigeria Revenue Service.

One important point: if stamp duty was correctly applied, it cannot be reversed. The bank has already remitted it. But a genuine error — wrong amount, wrong transaction, duplicate charge — is a legitimate dispute worth pursuing.

FAQ

Who pays stamp duty on bank transfers in Nigeria now?

The sender. Since 1 January 2026, under the Nigeria Tax Act 2025, the ₦50 stamp duty on electronic transfers of ₦10,000 or more is deducted from the sender's account. Before 2026, the receiver paid it.

Why was stamp duty deducted when I received money?

If it happened before January 2026, that was the old rule, when the charge applied to receipts of ₦10,000 or more. If it happened in 2026, it may be an error, because the receiver no longer pays. Ask your bank to check the transaction.

Is ₦50 always the stamp duty amount?

Yes, under the current rules it is a flat ₦50 per qualifying transfer of ₦10,000 or more, whatever the size of the transfer above that. Rates are set by law and can change, so confirm with your bank if a figure looks different.

Does stamp duty apply to transfers between my own accounts?

Transfers between your own accounts at the same bank are generally exempt. How each bank defines "your own accounts" can differ, so check with your bank if you move money between accounts often.

Are salary payments charged stamp duty?

Salary payments are generally exempt. Employers and payroll services apply this exemption when paying wages.

Can I get the stamp duty charge reversed?

If it was correctly applied, no. If there was an error — a charge on a transfer below ₦10,000, an exempt transfer, a duplicate, or a charge on money you received in 2026 — raise a formal complaint and a confirmed error should be reversed.

Who should I contact first — my bank or the NRS?

Start with your bank. It can identify which transaction triggered the charge and whether it was correctly applied. For broader policy questions, the Nigeria Revenue Service is the right authority.

Conclusion

Stamp duty on bank transfers confuses people because the rules changed and nobody announced it on their statement. Since January 2026, the ₦50 charge follows the money out of the sender's account, not into the receiver's.

It is a government levy — not a bank fee — collected on transfers of ₦10,000 or more and passed to the Nigeria Revenue Service. If the deduction matches a qualifying transfer you sent, there is nothing further to do. If something looks wrong, follow the steps above and raise it formally.

To see every other charge that can appear on your statement, read our guide to bank charges in Nigeria, or browse the banking guides.