Govt drafts law to introduce pension for all

The government has drafted a law to introduce universal pension scheme for people aged between 18 years to 50 years.

Yesterday night, the finance ministry sought opinions from the stakeholders by April 12.

All Bangladeshi citizen from home and abroad but the employees of the government and autonomous bodies will be eligible to take benefit under the scheme.

For each citizen, a separate pension account will be created. As a result, the account will remain unchanged even if a beneficiary changes his or her job.

There will be a minimum amount of monthly fee. However, expatriates will be able to pay the fee quarterly.

The instalment for pension will be considered as investment and tax rebate while the monthly pension will remain out of income tax.

A beneficiary will be eligible for the scheme after paying instalments for at least 10 years in a row.

If a beneficiary dies before depositing the instalment for at least 10 years, then the accumulated amount will be returned with profit to the nominee.

A beneficiary will ensure the minimum annual savings. Otherwise, his or her account will be frozen. Later, the account can be resumed by paying a late fee and the due subscription fees.

There will be no option for a one-time withdrawal of the deposited money at any time. However, through an application, a beneficiary can take a maximum 50 percent loan against the deposited money, which must be paid back with interest.

The government may pay a portion of the monthly instalment for the lower income group people and bear the necessary expenditures of the pension authority and the other relevant organisations.

The pension authority will invest the amount deposited to the fund as per guideline (in ensuring maximum financial return).

The 15-member governing board which has proposed different rules and regulations for the scheme under the supervision of the finance ministry include people from the government and private sectors.

The governing board members are the governor of Bangladesh Bank, chairman of the National Board of Revenue, secretaries from the finance ministry, the Financial Institutions Division, social welfare ministry, women and child affairs ministry, post and telecom ministry and the Prime Minister's Office.

The chairman of the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission along with the presidents of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry, the Bangladesh Employers' Federation, Bangladesh Women Chamber of Commerce and Industry are also included in the governing board.