FY2020-21: NBR to adopt four strategies to boost revenue earnings

Amid the significant shortfall in revenue collection, this fiscal due to closure of businesses caused by Covid-19 pandemic, the government is going to adopt four strategies in the next fiscal to increase its revenue earnings. 

As part of the plan, the National Board of Revenue (NBR) will augment revenue collection in the next fiscal through automation of customs and bonded warehouses, according to a finance ministry document. 

The budget for 2020-21 fiscal year is scheduled to be placed in the national parliament on June 11.

Second, the NBR is looking forward to increasing the number of income tax payers. If necessary, the board will provide incentives to tax officials to motivate them to increase the number of tax payers, said the document. 

The third strategy of the NBR is to set up more electronic fiscal devices (EFDs) in businesses across country. In this regard, the major part of the new vat law-2012 will be implemented.

Finally, the board will install more scanning machines at land and sea ports. Each and every imported item should go through the scanners.

According to NBR, VAT (value-added tax) contributes 37.8 percent of the combined tax revenue, followed by income tax 35 percent, supplementary duty 14.8 percent and import duty 11.2 percent.

However, the NBR has faced a shortfall of Tk 45,408 crore against its tax collection target in the first eight months of the current 2019-20 fiscal. In July-February period, the NBR collected Tk1,44,000 crore in tax revenue against its target for Tk 1,89,000 crore.

Moreover, the tax revenue collection sees a major downtrend this year due to the economic meltdown, triggered by Covid-19, said officials of NBR.

As per a recent budget monitoring meeting, the number of Tax Identification Number (TIN)-holders stands at 49,47,876, while 23,00,000 filed tax returns. Meanwhile, NBR has also identified 100 businesses that dodge tax.

To bring transparency in VAT collection process, NBR officials said, the EFDs will be installed at all kinds of superstores, restaurants, fast food outlets, local manufacturing outlets, automotive garage-workshops, advertising agencies, community centres, confectioneries and the outlets of goldsmiths.

NBR will also import 14 more scanners for customs houses and land ports, said the NBR officials. Last February, the Chattogram port installed two new scanners, each of them having the capacity of scanning 150 containers per hour. With this, the total member of scanners in the port stands at seven.

Asked about the NBR move to increase revenue earnings next fiscal, former NBR chairman Dr Muhammad Abdul Mazid said there is no use of installing new infrastructure to boost revenue earnings especially at a time when people’s income and expenditure have dropped due to Covid-19 pandemic situation.

Rather, NBR should concentrate on realisation of dues, opined the former NBR boss.