Members of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) on Tuesday expressed their utter frustration over the continuous harassment of businessmen by field level tax officials.
They raised the issue at a seminar held at Mohakhali RAOWA Club in the city.
Expressing utter frustration and anger over the alleged harassment by the Tax officials, FBCCI President Abdul Matlub Ahmad said, “The business community wants a tax-friendly environment from the Revenue Board as they want to pay tax.
But, the National Board of Revenue has apparently failed to ensure such an environment as businessmen are facing harassments by the Tax officials. Harassment in the name of VAT collection is unacceptable. They cannot do this in the name of achieving the revenue target.”
Matlub Ahmad said the business community wants the VAT law to come into force on July 1, 2017.
He, however, demanded fixing the rate of VAT at 7 percent instead of 15 percent. He hoped the new online VAT project of NBR will stop harassment of tax-payers. The FBCCI President urged NBR to provide the businessmen with ECR machines free of cost.
Addressing the seminar, NBR Chairman M. Nozibur Rahman said that the Revenue Board will launch feedback email services in its three departments to stop harassment of businessmen and all other tax-payers.
The three departments are income tax, value added tax (VAT) and excise.
“The tax-payers will get all remedies by informing the authorities about harassment by tax officers or any other problem through emails,” he added.
The email IDs are: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected].
The NBR is proceeding towards digitalization, Nozibur Rahman said, adding that all business establishments would have to install ECR machines.
Customs, Excise and VAT Commissionerate (North) organised the seminar on VAT and supplementary tax laws of 2012.
NBR members Barrister Jahangir Hossain and Sultan Mahmud, VAT Intelligence Department Director General Khandaker Aminur Rahman and FBCCI Director Abul Kashem Khan addressed the seminar, among others.
