BWCCI for tax, VAT exemption for new women entrepreneurs

The Bangladesh Women Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BWCCI) urged the government to exempt tax and VAT for new women entrepreneurs for the first three years of starting a business.

The trade body for women entrepreneurs made the recommendation while sharing its opinion on the proposed budget for FY23 through a statement on Thursday.

Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal on Thursday placed the draft budget with an outlay of Tk 6,78,064 crore in parliament.

In the statement, BWCCI also made other recommendations to be incorporated in the revised national budget which includes – allocation of Tk 200 crore for the

women entrepreneurs financially affected by Covid-19 pandemic, raising personal income tax limit for women to Tk 4.5 lakh per year, VAT reduction from 15 per cent to 4 per cent for women-owned businesses in the service sector such as boutiques, beauty parlours, catering, restaurant and food shops.

It also urged for tax and VAT exemption for all women entrepreneurs for the upcoming two fiscal years (FY23 and FY24) to tackle the effect of Covid-19 losses.

The BWCCI also recommended reducing the new trade licence fees and renewal fees up to 50 per cent and increasing the loan allocation for women entrepreneurs up to 15 per cent from the existing 5 per cent in the stimulus packages of Bangladesh Bank.