AI agents for business finance: what they can and can't do
What AI agents can do in bookkeeping, close, collections and compliance today, where a person must stay in charge, and how to judge a product.
The short answer
If you are an Australian tax resident you declare the pay in your Australian return, converted to AUD, whether the Nigerian company treats you as an employee or a contractor. Temporary residents are generally not taxed on foreign income, but the ATO says income from work or services may still be taxed, so check where your pay is sourced. Your visa decides whether you may do the work at all; student visa holders, for example, are limited to 48 hours a fortnight while their course is in session.
A Nigerian startup offers you a remote role while you live in Perth, or your old Lagos employer asks you to keep working after you move. Four sets of rules apply at once: your status under the contract, Australian tax, Nigerian tax, and your Australian visa. This article takes each in turn from official and well-sourced pages, and flags where you need your own advice.
Employee or contractor
Most Nigerian companies hire people abroad as contractors, because running a payroll in Australia means registering with the ATO as an employer. Whatever the contract says, the label should match the facts: who controls how and when you work, whether you can send someone else, and whether you bear the risk of the result. The ATO has guidance on telling an employee from a contractor under its hiring and paying workers pages, and Nigerian law has its own tests, covered in contractor or employee under Nigerian rules.
If you are a contractor, you are running a business in Australia and the usual sole trader steps follow, including an ABN where you are entitled to one. See whether you need an ABN when all your clients are in Nigeria.
Australian tax on the income
The ATO's page for Australian residents (last updated 15 June 2026) says residents must declare foreign income, and that business income and consultancy fees from overseas are declared "as if it were earned in Australia". Everything is converted to Australian dollars using the exchange rates the ATO's translation rules allow or an average rate from its published rates.
Temporary residents are treated differently. The ATO's page on foreign and temporary resident income (last updated 8 June 2026) says temporary residents generally do not pay Australian tax on most foreign income, but may still be taxed on "income you earn from employment or services you perform overseas" while a temporary resident, depending on the facts. Pay for work you physically do in Australia may not be foreign income at all. If you hold a temporary visa, ask a registered tax agent how your Nigerian pay is sourced before you leave it off a return.
Nigerian tax and deductions
- As a contractor, the Nigerian company may deduct withholding tax from your fees: PwC's summary of Nigeria's 2024 regulations gives 10% for non-residents' professional and consultancy fees, as a final tax.
- As an employee, the company may keep deducting PAYE. PwC's summary of the Nigeria Tax Act residence rules says a permanent home or immediate family ties in Nigeria can keep you Nigerian tax resident, so moving abroad does not end Nigerian tax by itself.
- The NGEX diaspora guide (January 2026) says a non-resident doing remote work abroad need not file in Nigeria on that basis alone; whether you are non-resident turns on the tests above.
There is no Australia-Nigeria tax treaty on Nigeria's published list, so the tie-breaker rules that help people in the UK or Canada do not apply. See Nigerian withholding tax on your fees.
Super
If you are a contractor, nobody pays super for you; you can contribute yourself, covered in paying your own super as a sole trader. If the Nigerian company employs you, whether it must pay the superannuation guarantee depends on the ATO's employer rules, which we have not summarised here; ask the company how it is handling it, and check the ATO's super for employers pages.
Visa work rights
Your visa conditions apply to the work whoever pays you. Study Australia's page on the student visa (subclass 500) says students may work up to 48 hours a fortnight while their course is in session, with no limit during scheduled course breaks. Other temporary visas carry their own conditions. The page does not say that work for an overseas employer is outside the limit, so assume it counts unless the Department of Home Affairs tells you otherwise; see working for a Nigerian startup on a student visa.
What to check first
- Read your visa grant notice for work conditions.
- Agree in writing whether you are an employee or a contractor, and which country's law governs the contract.
- Ask the company what it will deduct in Nigeria and get receipts.
- Ask a registered tax agent whether you are an Australian resident or a temporary resident for tax, and how the income is sourced.
Keep a simple file from the start: the contract, every payslip or invoice, any Nigerian tax receipts, and the AUD value you recorded for each payment. If the arrangement later turns out to be employment rather than contracting, or the ATO asks how you converted naira or dollars, those records are what you will rely on.
Where Pryme fits
A Pryme account, which can be opened from Australia, holds NGN, USD, GBP and EUR with local details for each, so a Nigerian employer can pay you in naira or dollars and you choose when to convert with Swap. Pryme does not hold AUD; you move money to your Australian bank when you need it.
Questions people ask
Do I pay Australian tax on salary from a Nigerian company?
If you are an Australian tax resident, the ATO says you declare foreign income in your return. Temporary residents are generally exempt on most foreign income, but the ATO says income from work or services may still be taxed, so get advice on your facts.
Will my Nigerian employer still deduct PAYE?
It may. PwC's summary of the Nigeria Tax Act residence rules says a permanent home or immediate family ties in Nigeria can keep you resident there.
Does remote work for a Nigerian company count toward my student visa hours?
Study Australia states the 48-hours-a-fortnight limit without excluding overseas employers. Assume it counts unless Home Affairs confirms otherwise.
Does the Nigerian company have to pay my super?
If you are a contractor, generally no one pays it for you. If you are an employee, check the ATO's super for employers rules and ask the company.
Sources
- ATO: Australian resident for tax purposes, foreign and worldwide income (last updated 15 Jun 2026) · accessed Oct 2026
- ATO: Foreign and temporary resident income (last updated 8 Jun 2026) · accessed Oct 2026
- PwC Nigeria: Highlights of the Deduction of Tax at Source (Withholding) Regulations 2024 · accessed Oct 2026
- PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries: Nigeria, individual residence (reviewed 29 May 2026) · accessed Oct 2026
- NGEX Diaspora Guide to Nigeria's Tax Reforms 2026 (NiDCOM, Jan 2026) · accessed Oct 2026
- Study Australia: Student visa (subclass 500) · accessed Oct 2026
This article is general information, not financial, legal or tax advice. Products described are provided under the terms on this site and are subject to regulation and eligibility.