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The short answer
If you owe UK tax on Nigerian rent, interest or gains you never declared, HMRC's Worldwide Disclosure Facility is the route for offshore liabilities. You notify HMRC through the Digital Disclosure Service, then have 90 days to calculate and submit the tax, interest and penalties, and you pay on the day you submit. Coming forward before HMRC finds the income generally leads to lower penalties.
It is common: you moved to the UK, kept the flat at home let, and nobody told you HMRC wanted to hear about the rent. Years pass. Coming forward on your own terms is usually far better than waiting for a letter. This guide explains the Worldwide Disclosure Facility (WDF) as GOV.UK describes it, updated 6 April 2026. It is information, not tax advice, and for larger sums an adviser is worth paying for.
Who can use it
GOV.UK says the WDF is for anyone disclosing a UK tax liability that relates wholly or partly to offshore income, assets or activities. Nigerian rent, interest, dividends and gains on Nigerian land or shares are all offshore. Individuals, company directors, trustees, personal representatives and agents can use it, and non-UK residents can too if they meet the conditions. HMRC may refuse where assets are criminal property.
If HMRC has already written to you about money or assets abroad and your checks show you owe tax, GOV.UK says you must use the facility. If you are already under enquiry, your disclosure goes to the investigating officer. Our guide on responding to an HMRC letter about overseas income covers that situation.
The steps
- Notify. Tell HMRC through the Digital Disclosure Service as soon as you know you owe tax. You receive a disclosure reference number and a payment reference number.
- Prepare. You have 90 days to gather information, work out the tax, interest and penalties, and submit. In complex cases you can ask the Offshore Disclosure Facility for more time, up to 180 days in total.
- Submit and pay. Pay the full amount on the day you submit. If you cannot, agree a payment arrangement before you submit.
- Wait for HMRC. HMRC acknowledges within 15 days and aims to confirm what it will do within 90 days after that.
What the disclosure must contain
- All previously undisclosed UK liabilities, including any UK-side ones, not just the Nigerian income.
- Tax years up to and including 2024 to 2025. Outstanding returns for 2022 to 2023 onwards are filed as returns, not put in the disclosure.
- For each year: the income or gains, the tax, interest and penalty.
- The highest value of your overseas assets in the last five years, in pounds.
How far back, and penalties
You choose which of seven behaviours describes your case, ranging from a failure with a reasonable excuse, through not taking reasonable care, to deliberate conduct. Your choice sets how many years you must disclose. GOV.UK states that liabilities more than 20 years old cannot be disclosed through the service. You calculate your own penalties using HMRC's factsheets, and an untrue choice of behaviour can lead to civil or criminal action. Higher penalties can apply if you are already under enquiry.
Worked example
Example. Emeka moved to Leeds in 2019 and has let a Port Harcourt flat since then to a company that deducts 10% withholding tax. He never filed a UK return. He realised his mistake after reading about the end of the remittance basis.
- He notifies HMRC through the Digital Disclosure Service.
- He gathers rent receipts, withholding tax receipts and agent statements for each year from 2019 to 2020.
- He converts each year's rent to pounds at the rate when it arose and works out the UK tax, deducting allowable expenses and crediting the Nigerian tax.
- He picks the behaviour that fits his case, works out interest and penalties using HMRC's factsheets, and submits within 90 days, paying the same day.
- He registers for Self Assessment for the years HMRC tells him to file normally.
Because the Nigerian withholding is credited, the UK tax for each year can be modest, but interest and penalties add to it. The longer the delay, the more years and interest are involved.
Disclosure or a late return?
GOV.UK says the disclosure covers tax years up to and including 2024 to 2025, and that outstanding returns for 2022 to 2023 onwards are completed separately rather than included. So if HMRC has already asked you to file returns for recent years, those returns are filed in the normal way, with late filing penalties, and older years go into the disclosure. If you have never been asked to file, the disclosure is the route for the past and a normal return for the current year. When the two overlap, ask the Offshore Disclosure Facility or an adviser before you submit, so the same income is not counted twice.
Records that make it easier
The hardest part is usually evidence. Bank statements showing rent received, tenancy agreements, receipts for repairs and agent fees, and withholding credit notes are what an adviser will ask for. Our guide to records for Nigerian income lists them, and declaring Nigerian income on Self Assessment covers future years.
Where Pryme fits
If you move rent collection into a Pryme account, you can generate statements for each year, including verifiable ones through Pryme's partnership with VerifyDoc.ai that anyone can check have not been altered. See receipts and statements.
Questions people ask
Can I tell HMRC about Nigerian income I forgot to declare?
Yes. Offshore income is disclosed through the Worldwide Disclosure Facility, starting with a notification on the Digital Disclosure Service.
How long do I have after notifying HMRC?
90 days to submit the disclosure. You can ask for more time in complex cases, up to 180 days in total.
How many years of Nigerian income do I have to disclose?
It depends on the behaviour you select, which sets the number of years. The service cannot be used for liabilities more than 20 years old.
Will HMRC find out about my Nigerian bank account?
Nigeria signed the international agreement on automatic exchange of account information in 2017. See our guide to CRS and HMRC.
Sources
- GOV.UK: Worldwide Disclosure Facility, make a disclosure (updated 6 Apr 2026) · accessed Oct 2026
- GOV.UK: Tax on foreign income (updated 1 Oct 2026) · accessed Oct 2026
- HMRC SA106 Foreign notes 2026 · accessed Oct 2026
- PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries: Nigeria, corporate other issues (CRS) (reviewed 29 May 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.