Many business entities are reluctant to pay VAT (value added tax) to the government exchequer as it is yet to get acceptance like income tax, National Board of Revenue (NBR) chairman Md Mosharraf Hossain Bhuiyan said.
“Though VAT is one of the main sources of revenue collection, all are not willing to pay VAT to the government’s exchequer,” he said, adding that though many businesses especially the diagnostic centres, private clinics and medicals collect VAT from their clients, they do not give it to the government.
Being a regulatory body, the NBR takes some measures to collect revenue, Bhuiyan said, noting that each of its audits is successful in collecting VAT.
The NBR chairman came up with the observations at a pre-budget discussion with the exporters associations especially the textile and clothing sectors.
Md Hatem, vice president of Exporters Association of Bangladesh (EAB) and also former vice president of Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) and Abdul Kader Khan president of Bangladesh Garments Accessories and Packaging Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGAPMEA) also spoke.
Earlier, the EAB leader demanded to keep the services taken by the export-oriented sectors out of the VAT purview and conduct the audit each two years instead of each year.
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