Al Amin :
Tax collection by the National Board of Revenue (NBR) dropped drastically and witnessed over 2 per cent negative growth in last month (April) due to belt-tightening measures and erosion in income of both corporate and individuals.
The slow pace in the revenue earnings is also a reflection of slower economic activities in the country, experts said.
According to the provisional data of the NBR, the revenue collection declined by negative 2.29 per cent year-on-year in the 10th month of the current fiscal year.
The tax authority managed to collect Tk 24,781.55 crore against the monthly target of Tk 30,408.49 crore registering a deficit of Tk 5,626.94 crore in the last month, the data showed.
The NBR fetched Tk 25,362.66 crore in the same month of the last fiscal year, according to the data. Meanwhile, the overall revenue collection increased by 7.15 per cent to Tk 250,294.76 crore in last 10-month period of the current fiscal year compared to the corresponding period of the last year, lagging behind the annual target by over Tk 1,20,000 crore.
The revenue earning was Tk 233,600.73 crore during the July-April period of the last fiscal year.
With the current pace in tax collection, the revenue collection shortfall is likely to stand around Tk 75,000 crore at the end of the fiscal year, according to the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CDP).
Dr Fahmida Khatun, Executive Director of the CPD, said, “The shortfall in revenue collection is mainly for various economic mismanagement. The other indicators of the overall economy are also declined due to the economic mismanagement.”
“The ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine is a reason for the slow pace, but it should not blame entirely. Rather, it is important to keep an eye on where and how the mismanagement is downing the economic growth,” she said.
The NBR’s resource mobilisation grew by nearly 10 per cent in July-March period of the present fiscal year, while average tax revenue-collection growth was 12 per cent in the last five years.
Of the tax-collection wings, earnings from import-export tax was Tk 6,841.22 crore with the lowest 14.26 per cent negative growth and followed by Tk 6,831.08 crore from income tax posting an 11.98 per cent negative growth in last month.
Value-Added Tax (VAT) wing of the NBR, however, managed to collect Tk 11109.25 crore with a 15.44 per cent year-on-year growth during the last month, according to the data.
Dr Ahsan H Mansur, Executive Director of Policy Research Institute (PRI), said, “Import restriction, income erosion, corruption and inefficiency are the main reasons for the slow pace in the revenue collection.”
“There is no chance of any change in the situation, unless the government pays attention to reforming the tax department,” he added.
He further said, “Face-to-face meeting and physical visit in the tax department offices have to be stopped. Services should be delivered using numbers, so that taxmen do not know the persons concerned.”
