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The short answer
A UK company that wants a Lagos office normally needs a Nigerian subsidiary to hold the lease, since CAMA 2020 requires a foreign company to incorporate locally before carrying on business. The subsidiary pays the rent, deducts 10% withholding tax where the rules require it and remits it, and collects a receipt, which the Lagos Tenancy Law makes obligatory. Rent is exempt from VAT under the Nigeria Tax Act 2025, but agents' fees are not.
Paying rent in Lagos looks simple from London: agree a figure, send naira. In practice the questions are whose name is on the lease, how much rent can be paid upfront, what tax must be deducted, and what paper proves it all. This guide works through each for a UK-owned business.
Whose name goes on the lease
Gresyndale Legal, writing on Mondaq, explains that section 78 of the Companies and Allied Matters Act 2020 requires a foreign company to take steps to incorporate a separate Nigerian entity before carrying on business in Nigeria, and that until it does so it cannot have a place of business there. An office is a place of business. For most UK companies the lease should therefore sit with a Nigerian subsidiary; the options are covered in a Lagos office for a UK startup.
Signing in the subsidiary's name keeps the paperwork consistent: the tenant, the payer, the tax deductor and the entity whose books carry the cost are the same.
How much rent can be paid in advance
The Lagos State Tenancy Law 2011 applies to business premises as well as homes. Its main rules for an office tenant are:
- Section 4: a landlord may not demand, and a tenant may not offer or pay, more than one year's rent in advance from a new tenant. For sitting tenants the limit is six months for monthly tenancies and one year for yearly ones.
- Breaking section 4 is an offence for both sides, with a fine of ₦100,000 or three months' imprisonment.
- Section 5: the landlord must issue a receipt showing the date, names and addresses, the premises, the amount and the period covered.
- Section 10: deposits and service charges need a separate receipt, and the landlord must account for service charges in writing at least every six months.
Tax on the rent
Withholding tax
PwC's Nigeria tax summary, reviewed on 29 May 2026, lists withholding tax on rent, hire or lease at 10% for both corporate and individual recipients. The payer deducts it, remits it and issues a receipt so the landlord can claim the credit. PwC's highlights of the 2024 regulations give remittance deadlines of the 21st of the following month for the NRS and the 30th for a state revenue service. Landlords without a Tax ID face double the rate, up to 20%, and small companies have a narrow exemption for transactions under ₦2m where the vendor has a valid Tax ID. These regulations predate the 2025 tax Acts, so confirm current rates with the NRS or your adviser.
VAT
ThisDay's report of the NRS clarification in February 2026 says rent, both residential and commercial, is exempt from VAT under the Nigeria Tax Act 2025. Mondaq's review of the Act adds that services connected with property, such as agents, valuers and architects, remain taxable, so an agency fee invoice may carry 7.5% VAT even though the rent does not.
Stamp duty on the lease
Under the Act as summarised in the NAU Journal of Private and Property Law, dutiable instruments must be stamped within 30 days of execution, and an unstamped instrument is not admissible in civil proceedings. A lease you may one day need to enforce should be stamped. We could not confirm the current rate for leases from a primary source, so ask your solicitor.
Worked example
Example figures only. A UK company's Lagos subsidiary agrees a yearly rent of ₦12,000,000 with a corporate landlord in Yaba, plus a ₦1,000,000 agency fee.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Gross rent (one year in advance, within the s.4 limit) | ₦12,000,000 |
| Withholding tax at 10%, remitted to the tax authority | ₦1,200,000 |
| Paid to the landlord | ₦10,800,000 |
| Agency fee before VAT | ₦1,000,000 |
| VAT on agency fee at 7.5%, if the agent charges it | ₦75,000 |
The landlord's receipt should show the full ₦12,000,000 rent for the year, and the subsidiary issues a withholding tax receipt for ₦1,200,000. Without both, the landlord may later claim it was underpaid.
Records to keep
- The lease, stamped, in the subsidiary's name.
- The landlord's rent receipt and a separate service charge receipt.
- The withholding tax receipt and proof of remittance.
- The payment confirmation in naira and, for the UK group accounts, the sterling value used.
- Six years at least on each side: NTAA s.31 for Nigeria, and GOV.UK's 6 years from the year end for the UK parent's own records.
Serviced offices avoid a long lease altogether; see serviced offices for a small team in Nigeria and co-working spaces in Lagos for a UK company's team.
Where Pryme fits
A Pryme Business Account holds naira and pounds, and the app shows the rate and the fee before you approve a Swap for the rent. Serviced offices are one of the sectors in Spaces, Pryme's merchant ecosystem in Lagos, Abuja and Port Harcourt.
Questions people ask
Can a UK company rent an office in Lagos directly?
CAMA 2020 s.78 requires a foreign company to incorporate a Nigerian entity before carrying on business, and without one it cannot have a place of business. Most UK companies rent through a Nigerian subsidiary.
How much rent in advance can a Lagos landlord ask for an office?
Under s.4 of the Lagos Tenancy Law 2011, no more than one year from a new tenant, except in exempt areas such as Ikoyi and Victoria Island.
Is there withholding tax on office rent in Nigeria?
PwC's tax summary (May 2026) lists 10% on rent, hire or lease. The payer deducts and remits it and gives the landlord a receipt.
Is VAT charged on office rent in Lagos?
The NRS clarified in February 2026, as reported by ThisDay, that residential and commercial rent is VAT-exempt under the NTA 2025. Agents' fees remain taxable.
Sources
- Mondaq (Gresyndale Legal): Can a foreign company do business in Nigeria without incorporation? · accessed Oct 2026
- Lagos State Tenancy Law 2011 · accessed Oct 2026
- PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries: Nigeria corporate withholding taxes (reviewed 29 May 2026) · accessed Oct 2026
- PwC Nigeria: Highlights of the Deduction at Source (Withholding) Regulations 2024 · accessed Oct 2026
- ThisDay: Nigeria Tax Act 2025, setting the record straight on housing VAT (16 Feb 2026) · accessed Oct 2026
- NAU Journal of Private and Property Law: stamp duties under the NTA 2025 (Apr 2026) · 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.