Everything nobody tells you about living in Lagos

Free, independent guides to Nigerian bureaucracy, housing, money and daily life. Written for anyone making Lagos home — people arriving from abroad, people arriving from other states, and Lagosians who have simply never had a reason to read the Tenancy Law before.

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The things that block everything else. Until these are done, you cannot open a bank account, sign a lease or get paid properly.

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All dates ➞

Public holidays. Eid and Maulud are declared by the Sultan of Sokoto on sighting the moon, so the dates shown for them can be a day out.

The numbers, today

Every figure on this site comes from one dated file, so a guide can never quietly go stale. How that works ➞

What How much Where it bites
Minimum wage ₦70,000 A month, since the 2024 Act
Tax-free income ₦800,000/year About ₦66,666.67 a month
Pension off your payslip 8% Your employer adds another 10%
VAT 7.5% No levies stacked on top
Legal maximum rent advance 12 months Landlords routinely ask for 24

Browse everything

Moving to Lagos

Guides for the first weeks - a NIN, a bank account, a phone number that works and somewhere to sleep.

  1. How to move to Lagos
    1. Your first week checklist
    2. SIM cards and internet
    3. Weather and seasons
  2. Emergency numbers
5 guides ➞

Housing

What a Lagos landlord will ask for, what the Tenancy Law actually allows, and what moving in really costs.

  1. The rent advance
    1. How to find a place in Lagos
    2. Tenancy agreements
3 guides ➞

Money and tax

Your bank account, personal income tax under the new Act, your pension, and who you actually pay.

  1. Opening a bank account
  2. Income tax and the LIRS
    1. Your pension and your RSA
3 guides ➞

Work and business

What the Labour Act gives you and who it leaves out, and how to register a business of your own.

  1. Your rights as an employee
  2. Registering a business
2 guides ➞

Identity and paperwork

The NIN, and the documents that depend on it - which is nearly all of them.

  1. Your NIN and NIMC
    1. Nigerian passport
2 guides ➞

Health

Health insurance, which is compulsory in Lagos, and what to do in an emergency.

  1. Health insurance and Ilera Eko
1 guide ➞

Getting around

Danfo, keke, BRT, the Blue Line, and why the answer is usually "leave earlier".

  1. Getting around Lagos
    1. Driver's licence
2 guides ➞

Power, water and the calendar

Your DisCo, your band, your meter, the generator you will end up buying, and the days the city closes.

  1. Electricity in Lagos
  2. Public holidays
2 guides ➞