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The short answer
Lagos tenants nearly always pay in naira, so the simplest set-up is rent paid by bank transfer into a Nigerian naira account in your own name, from which you decide when to convert. Keep a tenancy agreement, a receipt for every payment and your agent's statements: as an Italian tax resident you report foreign rent in the RL section of your return at the net amount determined in Nigeria, converted at the exchange rate of the day it was received.
Owning a flat in Lekki or Yaba while you work in Bologna is common. The tenant pays a year in advance, an agent or a relative handles repairs, and you are expected to keep track from two thousand miles away. This guide covers how the money should move, which currency to collect it in, and the paperwork that protects you in both countries.
How tenants and agents can pay you
In Lagos, rent is usually quoted and paid in naira, often a year or more in advance. That leaves three common arrangements:
- Tenant pays you directly by bank transfer to a Nigerian naira account in your name. This gives the cleanest record: the narration, the tenant's name and the date are on your statement.
- An agent collects and remits. The agent receives the rent, deducts an agreed fee and repairs, and transfers the balance to you with a written statement. Agree the fee and reporting in writing first.
- A relative collects. Common and sometimes unavoidable, but it mixes your money with theirs. If you do this, ask them to transfer the full rent to your own account the same day, so your statement still shows it.
Avoid cash where you can. A cash rent leaves you depending on handwritten receipts if you are ever asked to prove the income in Italy or Nigeria. Lagos tenancy rules on rent in advance, receipts and notice are covered in the Nigeria library's guide to the Lagos Tenancy Law.
Which currency to collect in
Asking a Lagos tenant to pay in euros or dollars is rarely practical. Domestic transactions between people in Nigeria are expected to be priced and settled in naira: TheCable's summary of the CBN Foreign Exchange Manual 2026 (3 June 2026) reports that the naira is "the legal tender for transactions conducted within Nigeria", with exemptions for specific sectors rather than private landlords. So the real choice is not what the tenant pays in, but what you do with the naira once it lands:
- Keep it in naira if you have costs in Nigeria: service charge, repairs, family support, school fees or a future building project.
- Convert some or all to euros when you need it in Italy, choosing your timing rather than accepting whatever rate an agent uses.
- Split it: leave a year of expected Nigerian costs in naira and move the surplus.
Getting naira rent out of Nigeria as foreign currency means buying it through an authorised channel, and that process has its own rules; see repatriating rent from a Nigerian property.
A worked example
Example only, with round figures. A tenant pays ₦4,800,000 for a year. Your agent's agreed fee is 10%, so ₦480,000, and a plumbing repair costs ₦120,000. The agent should remit ₦4,200,000 (₦4,800,000 minus ₦480,000 minus ₦120,000) with a statement listing all three figures. You decide to keep ₦1,200,000 in naira for next year's service charge and repairs, and convert ₦3,000,000. The euro you receive depends on the rate and fee on the day; see the rate shown before you approve, not a figure quoted weeks earlier.
Records Italy expects
If you are tax resident in Italy, the Lagos rent is part of your worldwide income. Fiscomania's guide (4 February 2025, updated April 2026) explains that under article 70(2) of the TUIR, rent from property abroad is included at the net amount determined under the foreign country's rules, reported in the RL section of the Redditi PF return, with a credit for tax paid abroad. Under article 9(2) of the TUIR, foreign-currency amounts are converted at the exchange rate of the day they were received. The same guide notes that IVIE, the Italian tax on property held abroad, is due on the property whether or not it is let; see IVIE on Nigerian property.
That makes these records worth keeping for each year:
- The tenancy agreement and any renewal letter.
- A receipt for each rent payment, with date, amount and property address.
- Your Nigerian account statement showing the credit.
- Agent statements showing fees and repairs.
- Evidence of any Nigerian tax paid on the rent, if you claim a credit.
- The exchange rate you used for conversion, with its date and source.
What to check first
- Is the rent going to an account in your own name, not a relative's?
- Does the agent's mandate say how much they keep and when they remit?
- Will the naira be needed in Nigeria within a year?
- Do you have a receipt and statement for every payment, filed by tax year?
Where Pryme fits
A Pryme account can receive the tenant's naira into an account held at a licensed Nigerian microfinance bank, regulated by the CBN and insured by the NDIC up to the applicable limit. Naira you plan to spend on the property can sit in a Savings Box, and when you want euros, Swap shows the rate and the fee before you approve. A verifiable receipt or statement through VerifyDoc.ai (receipts) gives your tenant and your commercialista a record anyone can check. See the multicurrency account.
Questions people ask
Can my Lagos tenant pay rent into my Italian account?
The tenant would need to buy foreign currency and send it abroad, which few tenants can do easily. Rent paid in naira to your Nigerian account is the usual route.
Do I have to declare Nigerian rent in Italy?
If you are Italian tax resident, foreign rent is reported in the RL section of Redditi PF, with a credit for tax paid abroad. Check your case with a commercialista or CAF.
Which exchange rate do I use for Italian tax?
Article 9(2) of the TUIR uses the rate on the day the money was received; many advisers use an annual average in practice, which does not match the wording.
Is it safe to let a relative collect my rent?
It works if they pass the full amount to your own account at once. Mixing it with their money makes your records harder to prove.
Sources
- TheCable: What to know about the CBN's new FX manual (3 Jun 2026) · accessed Oct 2026
- Fiscomania: Immobili locati all'estero, tassazione in Italia (4 Feb 2025, updated Apr 2026) · accessed Oct 2026
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