Tax fair pulls in large crowd on second day

The income tax fair drew a large number of taxpayers yesterday, reflecting rising popularity for such a showcase that gives people one-stop service for taxpayers.

Some 92,016 taxpayers visited the weeklong countrywide fair that logged Tk 475.39 crore in tax receipts, the National Board of Revenue said in a statement.

"I am surprised and impressed by the service here. It was beyond my expectation," Sabrina Noor, a doctor at a private hospital in Dhaka.

This was her first time visiting the income tax fair which the NBR has been organising since 2010 to motivate people to pay taxes by extending tax-related assistance to existing and potential taxpayers.

The event, which will continue in seven divisional cities and 57 districts until September 22, offers taxpayers scope to get taxpayer identification numbers online and submit tax returns on the spot without having to visit the tax offices.

Sabrina said she was visiting the fair to learn to do her taxes herself.

"I want to file taxes alone, without the assistance from a tax lawyer," she said. Before that she completed online re-registration for TIN.

The NBR said 2,383 people signed up for fresh TINs yesterday, up from 1,831 the previous day. A larger number of existing taxpayers also re-registered for online TINs.

Some 16,593 tax returns were submitted yesterday, up from 13,451 the previous day, it said.

"I completed all the formalities in half an hour,” said Liakat Hossain Chowdhury, a former public servant and a resident of Mirpur.

"It is good that one does not require moving from one table to another. All procedures can be completed at one place," said Mohammad Anwar Hossain, a small businessman.

The NBR logged Tk 612.34 crore in the first two days of the fair.  In 2013, it raked in Tk 1,117 crore.

The fair remains open from 10am to 5pm.