Business leaders call for withdrawal of addl tax

Leaders of printing and packaging sector urged the government to withdraw additional tax on the raw materials of printing and packaging industry.

They made the demand at a meeting at the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI), chaired by FBCCI Vice President Md Amin Helaly on Thursday, said a press release.

Speaking at the meeting, the businessmen said that import duty on imported paper, paper board, art card, art paper etc., which are essential educational materials, has been increased from 15 per cent to 25 per cent in the proposed budget.

Besides, import duty on printing plates, one of the raw materials of printing industry, has been increased from 1 per cent to 10 per cent and import duty on printing ink has been increased from 10 per cent to 15 per cent.

The country's printing and packaging sector will suffer financially due to increased taxes and duties. In addition, increasing packaging costs will reduce the competitiveness of domestic and export-oriented industries, they said.

As a result, students across the country will be affected due to increase in import duty on paper which will have a negative impact on the overall education system, they added.

At the meeting, the FBCCI vice president said, “The government is giving top priority to the education sector and has adopted education as one of the main instrument for development.”

In such a scenario, he considers that it is not appropriate to impose additional taxes on educational materials.

The business leaders also said that a reduction in import duty would stop the misuse of bonds and increase legal imports of paper which will lead to increase in government revenue.

They also requested the government for duty-free import of paper used in textbooks.