Mobile call rate not to increase too much: NBR chairman

Chairman of National Board of Revenue (NBR) Abu Hena Rahmatul Munim said the 5 percent increase of supplementary duty on mobile phone services in the budget proposal will not increase call rate too much.

The NBR chairman made the remark while taking questions from journalists in a post-budget press conference on Friday (June 12) at finance minister's residence.

Since mobile phone call rate has been very low, inattentive mobile users have caused many accidents, the NBR chairman said.

However, he said, the increase in SD is not to reduce mobile phone usage but because the call rate was too low.

"Some are opposing the increase in SD without not considering that the cost will increase only by 5 paisa against each taka usage and it will not affect people too much," he said.

At the new tax rate proposed in the FY 2020-21 budget, Value-Added tax (VAT) on mobile services will be 15 percent, supplementary duty 15 percent, and surcharge 1 percent. As a result, the total tax will be 33.56 percent. In other words, for every Tk 100 recharge, the government will get a little more than Tk 25 as tax.