Staff Reporter :
The leaders of Bangladesh Restaurant Owners Association (BROA) have demanded reduction in value added Tax (VAT) on sales of all hotels and restaurants to three per cent in the upcoming 2022-23 fiscal year.
Now it is 10 per cent on air conditioned restaurant and 7.5 percent on non-air conditioned
restaurants. They have also demanded separate NBR units for VAT, setting up of one-stop service centers for restaurants and granting industry status to hotel and restaurants.
Imran Hasan, Secretary General of the BROA, made these demands to the government at a budget discussion meeting with National Board of Revenue Chairman Abu Hena Md Rahmatul Muneem at NBR office on Thursday.
The BROA President Osman Gani and other senior leaders and senior NBR officials were present in the meeting.
Imran Hasan said, the VAT rate on four and five star hotels and restaurants is 15 per cent, VAT on sale of foreign food is 10 per cent, VAT on Bengali and street food for workers, day labourers is three per cent and tax rate 0.5 percent and canteen on educational institutions 2 per cent and tax 0.5 per cent.
He said that EFD machines should be installed in all types of hotels and restaurants to ensure 100 per cent collection of VAT from this sector. He said tax officials are filing cases or otherwise harassing restaurant owners for delaying VAT payments for reasons such as sickness.
Imran Hasan said, “VAT on restaurant space / establishment should be 0 per cent. In case of income tax assessment, restaurant owners have to pay up to 35 to 40 percent of their profit as VAT now. They have demanded it be reduced to 30 percent while tax should be 0.5per cent.”
