Pay taxes willingly to ensure development: Amu
Weeklong income tax fair begins
Financially solvent citizens should pay income tax willingly to ensure the countrys development, industries minister Amir Hossain Amu said yesterday.
If financially solvent citizens pay their taxes regularly, Bangladesh will become a middle-income nation before 2021. And it will turn into a developed and enriched country by 2041, the minister said, after inaugurating the income tax fair of Dhaka division on the Officers Club premises in the capital.
The National Board of Revenue (NBR) has organised the weeklong fair.
Bangladesh is recognised as a lower middle income country because the number of taxpayers is low as per the population ratio, when compared to neighbouring countries, the minister said. If the people pay their taxes willingly, it will help increase revenue earnings. This would eventually help in the implementation of more projects on infrastructure development in various sectors, he added.
He said the citizens would enjoy a better standard of living if the country is developed.
The nation could save huge amounts of money if the projects are implemented with the countrys own funds, instead of foreign loans, he observed.
Meanwhile the seven-day tax fair 2015 kicked off across the country yesterday, aiming to provide one-stop hassle-free tax-related services to taxpayers, reports UNB.
The event will take place for seven days in all divisional cities, while it will be for four days in districts.
The National Board of Revenue (NBR) in 2010 first organised the fair in Dhaka and Chittagong to provide one-stop services to taxpayers.
The NBR for the first time is holding its annual tax fair in 86 upazilas across the country apart from other places to attract eligible taxpayers to regularise their tax payment.
The fair will take place in 29 upazilas for two days and 57 upazilas for one day between September 16 and September 22.
Last year, the tax fair was held at divisional headquarters for seven days, 54 districts for four days and three hill districts for two days.
The amount of tax that collected from the tax fair across the country last year was Tk 1675,30,73,451 and services were provided to 649,185 taxpayers. Some 15,907 people took new e-TIN while 10,838 TIN holders took the e-TIN.
Currently, the enlisted number of taxpayers in the country is around 1.8 million. In the last fiscal (2014-15) year, some 1.07 million taxpayers submitted their income tax returns, down from the 2013-14 fiscal which was 1.16 million.
At the fair, the taxpayers will be able to submit their tax returns for 2015-16 and pay taxes.
The NBR will have booths to help taxpayers register electronically generated TINs or re-register for e-TINs to replace their old TINs.
There is dedicated booths for the freedom fighters, physically challenged, women and elderly, so that they can easily fulfill their tax related formalities.
For the first time, there are separate booths to provide services to people on value added taxes, customs and department of national savings.
Among others, NBR Chairman Mohammad Nojibur Rahman, NBR Member (tax and human resource management) Abdur Razzak and other officials also spoke on the occasion.
A total of 123 booths have been set up at the fair. The NBR has set up 56 helpdesks for taxpayers and 41 booths to accept income tax return forms. Besides, 10 E-TIN and 10 other services booths have also been set up. Sonali Bank has set up four booths and Janata Bank two booths so that people can deposit their taxes instantly on the premises of the fair.
