National Board of Revenue (NBR) Chairman Abu Hena Rahmatul Muneem on Saturday said that the board would award the VAT invoice issuing entities while collecting VAT in order to motivate them further.
The NBR Chairman said this while addressing a function as the chief guest marking the draw of Electronic Fiscal Device (EFD) lottery held at the NBR Bhaban in Dhaka’s Segunbagicha area.
“We’ll not only award the EFD invoice receivers, but also award those entities which issue EFD invoices. We’ll give them the award to motivate them in collecting revenues,” he said.
The NBR for the first time honoured an EFD invoice issuing enterprise. Venus Jewelers Chairman Ganga Charan Malakar received the Honour from the NBR Chairman.
Speaking on the occasion, Muneem said, “Today a VAT invoice issuing enterprise was honoured and VAT invoice issuing entities would be honoured later like the VAT invoice receivers.”
Turning to the issue of gold smuggling, he said that the government has been trying to give necessary policy support to the concerned stakeholders over the years so that gold is being imported legally and thus smuggling of gold is curbed.
“But, despite this, there is no such response in import of gold,” he observed.
Expressing his slight concern over the worrying seizures of smuggled gold, the NBR Chairman said that it has become a big challenge for the revenue board to avert gold smuggling.
He also opined that there are various reasons for gold smuggling, adding that they are looking into whether gold smuggling is taking place due to duty burden.
Muneem informed that the government would consider taking some measure in the next budget for simplifying the import of gold.
He also said the price of products should have to be fixed in such way so that the amount of VAT is included in the product price so that the consumers need not pay VAT separately.
