No VAT registration, no business

None will be allowed to run business without value-added tax registration once the new VAT law comes into effect from July 1, said National Board of Revenue Chairman Md Mosharraf Hossain Bhuiyan yesterday.

“We will develop a system to ensure VAT registration,” he said.

The VAT rates for traders would be determined after the registration, he said at a discussion with the associations, representing services and manufacturing sectors, at the NBR headquarters in the capital.

The revenue authorities arranged the event to hear views and recommendations from stakeholders, particularly businesses, in the run-up to the framing of tax proposals for the next fiscal year of 2019-20.

Bhuiyan made the remarks after Bangladesh Restaurant Owners' Association demanded that the NBR make VAT registration, officially termed as Business Identification Number (BIN), compulsory for all restaurants.

“Let's all come under the VAT registration. Then the authorities will be able to decide what types of restaurant will be exempted from VAT and what types will be slapped with VAT,” said Rezaul Karim, secretary general of the association.

Bhuiyan said only businesses that would pay 15 percent VAT would be able to get rebate on the VAT paid.

The tariff structure will be fixed in a way that ensures revenue collection and facilitates trade and investment.

Bhuiyan was however critical about giving too much protection, saying some sectors fail to stand on their own even after enjoying protection for a long time.

“We will have to come out of the practice of giving protection.”

He also sounded tough on the misuse of duty-free import privilege granted to exporters for importing raw materials, which are used to make exportable products under the bonded warehouse scheme.

“Stern actions will be taken against the exporters who misuse the privilege. We have already started taking action.”

Bangladesh Paper Mills Association alleged that paper imported under the bonded warehouse privilege was released by a section of importers into the domestic market, affecting local mills.

Bhuiyan, responding to a plea of the Tourism Developers Association of Bangladesh to allow tourist coaches to be imported at reduced tariff, said the NBR wanted to give incentive to promote businesses.

“But it is misused in many cases,” he said, citing that a section of importers brought in cars misusing the duty benefit given to ambulance importers.