The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has once again extended a deadline for private jet owners who are yet to pay import duties on their aircraft. The decision, announced on Thursday by the service’s spokesperson, Maiwada Abdullahi, grants an additional one-month grace period following what the NCS described as “mutual understanding” after further consultations.
This development follows a long-standing dispute between the government and private jet owners over unpaid customs duties, which amount to several billions of naira. Despite repeated enforcement threats and previous attempts to ground defaulting jets, the Customs appears to have softened its stance once more.
In 2024, the NCS launched a verification exercise aimed at identifying and recovering import duties from private jet owners. The government had initially planned to begin grounding non-compliant aircraft from October 14, 2024. However, the operation was postponed that same day, and a new deadline was set for November 14.
After several delays and consultations failed to yield full compliance, Customs finally began enforcement operations in 2025, grounding over 60 private jets. This operation, which lasted from Monday to Wednesday, led to the temporary sealing of private hangars at major airports in Lagos and Abuja. Some of the luxury aircraft affected include models such as the Bombardier BD-700 Global 6000, BD-700 Global 6500, and BD-700 Global 7500.
The crackdown reportedly affected high-profile individuals, including top banking executives and multinational oil company officials. In response, many of the jet owners began lobbying top government officials and the Presidency to reverse the grounding of their aircraft.
However, in a surprising turn of events on Thursday, the NCS announced a halt to the enforcement exercise. Speaking to journalists, Abdullahi explained, “We decided to ground aircraft, but we have done some consultations and we have a mutual understanding to suspend the action for another month so that others will come forward to comply. We know they really want to comply, it is just about regularisation and payment of customs duty.”
This is not the first time the Customs Service has granted extensions or paused enforcement action. The repeated delays have raised questions about the government’s ability to enforce tax compliance, particularly among the wealthy elite.
Aviation industry expert, Captain Muhammed Badamosi, weighed in on the situation. He emphasized the separate roles of regulatory bodies, saying the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has the responsibility to ensure compliance with aviation laws, while the NCS is tasked with revenue collection.
“The NCAA is a different body responsible for compliance with the regulations of the aviation ministry, and the NCS is another body responsible for tax collection. The NCAA can’t control the standard operating procedure for customs services,” Badamosi said.
He further advised the NCAA to educate jet owners on the legal requirements needed to operate aircraft within Nigerian airspace. According to him, clearer communication from regulatory bodies could help bridge the gap between aviation operations and customs compliance.
With the new extension, all eyes are now on private jet owners to see whether they will finally settle their debts or if the Customs Service will once again postpone enforcement. The situation continues to draw public attention, especially as ordinary citizens face strict tax enforcement while some of the nation’s wealthiest individuals receive repeated concessions.
For now, the NCS insists it is acting in good faith and expects full compliance before the new one-month deadline expires. However, the agency has not stated what further actions will be taken if the jet owners fail to meet this latest deadline.
