Staff Reporter :
The government should focus on direct taxes by reducing dependence on existing indirect taxes for revenue mobalisation, as the country has one of the lowest Tax-GDP ratios in the world, businesses said.
The country advances towards achieving the coveted ‘developing country’ and ultimately ‘developed country’ status in the future, so it has to shift away from the current dependence on indirect taxes and instead focus on direct taxes for revenue generation, they added.
They came up with the remark while speaking a discussion on “Payment of Taxes, Filing of Returns and Compliance with Provisions of Deduction of Tax at Source: Changes Brought by the Finance Act, 2022” organized by Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industries, Dhaka (MCCI), at its office in the capital on Wednesday.
MCCI President Md Saiful Islam said that the global economy was going through challenging times due to Covid-19 pandemic and Russia-Ukraine war.
Implementation of online and automation systems could save cost and time for businesses, he believed.
He also expressed his hope for NBR’s cooperation and support in the Chamber’s pursuit of extending the validity period of trade and other business relevant licenses to three to five years from the current one year.
Wakil Ahmed, Joint Commissioner of Taxes of Tax Zone-15, said that every institution was working on behalf of the government. Claiming that the tax deducted at source was one of the highest sources of the government’s revenue generation, he hoped everyone will support the implementation of the pertaining rules and regulations.
NBR Commissioner (Tax) A K M Hasanuzzaman, MCCI’s immediate past president Barrister Nihad Kabir and representatives from Picard Bangladesh Limited, British American Tobacco Bangladesh Limited, HSBC, Bayer CropScience Ltd., Transcom Limited, KAFCO, MetLife, NCC Bank, Chaldal.com, among others, spoke on the occasion.
