The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority has stepped into a dispute over a new airline ticket tax imposed by Overland Airways, after passengers complained that the charge was applied to tickets bought before the tax took effect.

The controversy surfaced when a passenger, identified on X as @oluwakemmybello, accused the airline of collecting a “new VAT” or special levy on tickets purchased in 2025, linked to a tax introduced by the Nigeria Revenue Service from January 1.

In a post directed at aviation regulators, the passenger recounted that her 86-year-old grandmother was required to pay an extra N11,286 at Ilorin Airport before boarding, even though the ticket had been purchased well before the new tax regime began.

“Dear @mikeachimugu01, kindly assist in clarifying if a ticket purchased since last year 2025 attracts additional VAT? My 86-year-old Grandma was forcibly made to pay N11,286 as new VAT today at Ilorin airport by @OverlandAirways @cpdncaa, please help,” she wrote.

The post sparked widespread concern over alleged sharp practices by airlines and revived fears that passengers could once again bear the burden of multiple and unclear taxes in the aviation sector.

In response, the Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection at the NCAA, Michael Achimugu, said on Wednesday that the regulator had summoned Overland Airways for an urgent meeting to clarify the basis for the extra charge.

Achimugu said the meeting brought together senior NCAA officials, including the directors of Consumer Protection and Air Transport Regulations, the General Manager for Policy and Enforcement, the heads of Flight Operations and Adjudication, and lawyers from the authority’s legal department.

“We summoned the airline, Overland, yesterday. We have heard their side of things,” Achimugu said.

He said the airline maintained that aviation taxes are applied when a ticket is used for travel, not at the point of purchase, adding that the carrier claimed it has a long-standing agreement with the tax authorities to support this practice.

However, the NCAA dismissed the argument, stressing that any such arrangement must now comply with the provisions of the new tax regime and be formally clarified by the Nigeria Revenue Service.

“The NCAA’s position is that any such agreement between the airline and anybody in the past is overtaken by the new events, unless stated otherwise by the NRS,” Achimugu stated.

He added that the Director of Air Transport Regulations had spoken with the Chairman of the Presidential Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms Committee, Taiwo Oyedele, who reportedly confirmed that the new tax should not apply to tickets bought before 2026.

The NCAA said the position would still be formally validated by the NRS. The agency’s publicist noted that the airline is concerned about the possibility of being required to pay back taxes if revenue authorities eventually decide that tickets purchased before 2026 but flown in 2026 should attract the new charge.

“The airline’s fear is that they would be forced to pay a backlog of taxes if the NRS maintains that tickets purchased before 2026 but flown in 2026 must be charged.

The NCAA, however, instructed Overland Airways to promptly seek formal clarification from the NRS and submit its response within 10 days.

“Given our determination yesterday, they have been told that they must facilitate a refund to all passengers affected by this situation if the NRS clarifies otherwise. They agreed,” Achimugu said.