Home ›› 05 Apr 2023 ›› News
To bring stability to the gold market, Bangladesh Jewellery Association (BAJUS) made twelve proposals in a bid to reduce the price of gold at a press conference organised in Bashundhara City of Dhaka on Tuesday.
The first of twelve proposals is to reduce the VAT on jewellery sales to 3% from the existing 5 per cent.
BAJUS has alleged that domestic and foreign syndicates of smugglers have spread instability in the gold market by creating an artificial crisis. Gold price is constantly being hiked in the local bullion market.
The wholesale market of gold has become hostage to the syndicate of pawnbrokers who share deep ties with smuggling syndicates. As a result, the price of gold is increasing in the local pawn or bullion market creating an artificial crisis.
In order to overcome this crisis, BAJUS has demanded an increase in the import duty-tax rate for bringing gold bars under the baggage rule.
BAJUS President Sayem Sobhan Anvir was present at the conference with other business leaders. Anwar Hossain, Vice President of Bajus and Chairman of the Standing Committee on Tariff and Taxation, read the written statement.
According to the BAJUS statement, it is proposed to conduct a joint study involving Bajus to determine the impact of the dollar crisis, smuggling and money laundering due to the misuse of facilities to bring gold bars and ornaments under the Baggage Rule.
BAJUS’s basic idea is that about 73 thousand crore rupees worth of gold ornaments and bars are smuggled into Bangladesh every year by road, water and air routes by misusing the foreign currency earned by expatriate workers. The government should take initiatives to stop this money laundering and smuggling in the ongoing dollar crisis in the country.
The transparency of the jewellery industry is being controlled by installing EFD machines. If EFD Machine is installed in 40 thousand jewellery establishments across the country, a huge amount of revenue will be possible. There will be equality in business.
EFD machines should be distributed expeditiously to all registered jewellery establishments. No one can be harassed by not installing EFD machines in all jewellery establishments.
Import Duty (CD) levied on Gold Ore is to be reduced from 5 per cent to 1 per cent conditionally. In the case of gold dore, instead of CD 10 per cent, the duty rate should be 5 per cent for IRC holders and VAT-compliant industries.
CD on rough diamonds imported by establishments approved by appropriate authorities for diamond cutting and processing purposes will be reduced from 25 per cent to 10 per cent and supplementary duty (SD) will be increased from 2 per cent to 10 per cent.
In order to encourage the import of polished diamonds through legal means, SD should be reduced from 60 per cent to 20 per cent on the condition of 40 per cent Value Addition of polished diamonds imported by organizations approved by the appropriate authorities.
Besides, under Section 46 (BB) (2) of the Income Tax Act, Bajus has proposed to provide a tax holiday for the Gold Refinery industry for 10 years.
Traders have proposed a tax holiday for 10 years along with an exemption from all types of customs duties on imported raw materials and machinery for the purpose of manufacturing gold ornaments.
To encourage the export of gold bars, gold ornaments, and gold coins legally, we propose to give financial incentives to the exporters at the rate of 50 per cent of the total value added, subject to at least 20 per cent value addition.
It is proposed to provide SRO facilities along with harmonization of tariff rates with neighbouring countries by reducing abnormal tariff rates based on H.S. Code.
Some 25 per cent of the total amount of gold recovered by all law enforcement agencies including customs authorities to prevent smuggling is proposed to be paid as a reward to the members of the organizations.
BAJUS proposes to conduct a joint study to determine the impact of the dollar crisis, smuggling and money laundering due to misuse of the facility to bring gold bars and ornaments under the Baggage Rule.
