The Centre for Policy Dialogue has urged the government to remove the provision of offering amnesty for money launderers with a payment of a certain rate of tax as penalty in the proposed budget of the FY2022-23.
The think tank made the call at a post-budget press conference in Dhaka on Friday.
“Such an initiative is ethically unacceptable, will discourage honest taxpayers and is unlikely to generate the intended revenue,” CPD Executive Director Fahmida Khatun said.
According to the proposed provision in the draft budget, no authority, including the income tax authority, will raise any question as to the source of any asset located abroad if a taxpayer pays tax on such assets.
Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal placed the budget proposal for FY23 before parliament on Thursday.
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The minister proposed a 15 per cent tax on immovable property not repatriated to Bangladesh, 10 per cent on movable property not repatriated to Bangladesh, and 7 per cent on cash and cash equivalents repatriated to the country.
This opportunity will be in force for the period starting from the first day of the new FY23 and will end on June 30, 2023.
Kamal said, the proposed provision, when implemented, will increase the flow of foreign currency to the economy, increase income tax revenue and the taxpayers will also feel relieved by availing this opportunity to declare their assets and money acquired/earned abroad in their respective income tax returns.
