- The government is losing revenue because many high-cost luxury item sellers are not paying VAT.
- Only 8,000 out of 40,000 jewellery shops in Bangladesh are registered for VAT.
- Only 1,000 jewellery shops have EFDs installed for sales monitoring.
- The government could be earning at least Tk 850 crore annually in VAT from jewellery sales.
- Bangladesh has a low tax-GDP ratio, below eight percent.
- The government raised VAT on essential items and services earlier this year, but this decision was later withdrawn.
- The NBR is taking steps to enforce VAT registration and EFD installation, starting with the jewellery sector.
- The NBR should conduct on-site visits to ensure compliance and encourage businesses to digitise their VAT payment processes.
- Strict action should be taken against VAT evasion.
- The number of VAT payers in Bangladesh needs to be increased.
- A comprehensive approach is needed to ensure that all businesses contribute their fair share to national revenue.
Source: thedailystar.net
Note that this post was (partially) written with the help of AI. It is always useful to review the original source material, and where needed to obtain (local) advice from a specialist.
