The National Board of Revenue (NBR) chief has urged the local businesses to ensure manufacturing quality products to get more tax and duty benefits.
Speaking at a pre-budget meeting on Sunday, NBR Chairman Md Mosharraf Hossain Bhuiyan said consumers will be encouraged to buy domestic products instead of imported ones, if they get quality items.
Representatives from different sectors attended the pre-budget meeting on NBR premises.
In the meeting, the NBR chief pledged to increase tax on low-segment cigarettes in the upcoming budget, and to impose uniform import duty on safety and fire-fighting equipments for all sectors.
Currently, only the export-oriented sectors enjoy duty benefit on import of safety and fire-fighting equipments.
He said NBR may also withdraw supplementary duty (SD) on local products along with providing other tax benefits, if the businesses improve the quality of their products.
His comments came after Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) Foundation demanded withdrawal of SD on local fruit juices.
SME Foundation consultant Shahabuddin Ahmed sought tax benefit for the import-substitute sectors, reduced rate of VAT for SMEs, increase in VAT-free turnover to Tk 3.6 million from the current Tk 2.4 million, and upward revision of turnover limit to Tk 15 million from the existing Tk 8.0 million.
Bangladesh Paper Mills Association said local paper mills are capable of meeting the domestic demand, and sought imposition of higher customs duty (CD) on import of all types of printing and writing papers.
It also demanded withdrawal of VAT and reduction of CD on import of different types of chemicals used in paper industry. Responding to their demand, the NBR chairman suggested the local paper manufacturers to improve the quality of their newsprint.
Bangladesh Land Developers Association sought unconditional investment opportunity of undisclosed money for land development and real estate sector.
The association also sought reduction of land registration fees to 7.0 per cent from the current 14 per cent.
Bangladesh Marine Fisheries Association President A K Shamsuddin Khan demanded withdrawal of duty on import of fishing nets and other fishing equipments.
Anti Tobacco Media Alliance (ATMA) urged NBR to bring down the number of cigarette price slabs to two from the existing four, set the minimum price for the low-segment cigarettes at Tk 50 per 10 sticks with raising their duty to 60 per cent, and for high-quality cigarettes at Tk 100 per 10 sticks with fixing their tax at 65 per cent.
The alliance also demanded introduction of a specific tax at a rate of Tk 5 per 10 sticks for all cigarettes.
It also recommended NBR to withdraw the provision of ex-factory prices for taxing smokeless tobacco and impose tax on retail price of all types of tobacco products.
The government can earn additional revenue amounting to Tk 75-100 billion, if the proposals are adopted, the alliance members added. Responding to their proposals, the NBR chairman also pledged to make tobacco products costlier.
