http://www.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=123178
NBR plans e-pay for income tax
Sayeda Akter
The National Board of Revenue (NBR) is set to introduce an e-pay system for income tax payers in July to reduce government revenue losses and taxpayers’ hassles.
The board sent a letter to Bangladesh Bank (BB) in this regard, requesting amendments to treasury rules. The treasury rules need to be revised to be able to accept e-payment, along with cash and cheques.
“If we can initiate the e-payment system, it will help people pay tax without hassles,” said Nasiruddin Ahmed, chairman of the board.
“This will help us resolve procedural complexities and rescue large sums of revenue that the government losses every year.”
“We will introduce the system in phases. Initially, we will start by bringing large and corporate taxpayers under the system. All stakeholders have agreed to cooperate to introduce the on-line tax payment system,” he said.
The NBR introduced the online tax filing system this month, which can work effectively once authorities launch online tax payment. NBR will be able to verify daily tax payment statistics for individuals and companies in its tax circles after the system is introduced.
NBR will be able to make faster moves and revise policy measures after examining the trends in tax payment, as the system will bring transparency to tax administration.
Currently, the NBR obtains data from its different zone offices to see the tax payment status and review trends, which is time-consuming. Additionally, taxpayers often complain about harassment by tax officials.
Bangladesh’s tax GDP ratio is one of the lowest in the world and even in the South Asian region, mainly due to complicated tax laws and anomalies in the board’s operations.
However, the government has taken several moves to simplify the system and increase revenue collection.
Meanwhile, the NBR recorded 14 percent growth in revenue collection in the July-November period of the current fiscal year, compared to the same period last year due to improved taxation.
Total revenue for the period stood at around Tk 21,309 crore, of which, around Tk 4,272 crore came from income tax, Tk 7,649 crore from VAT and Tk 8,816 crore from customs duty, according to NBR.
sayeda@thedailystar.net
