The existing business-identification numbers (BINs) may stand invalid for import, letters of credit (LC) opening, obtaining bank loans, land registration, supply of products, and participation in tender from July 01.
Officials said the import of products using a current 11-digit BIN will be suspended from July 01, 2017 unless the businesses obtain fresh VAT-registration numbers beforehand.
The National Board of Revenue (NBR) will start issuing new nine-digit business-identification numbers on March 15.
The NBR is introducing the new online BIN as part of implementation of the new VAT and Supplementary Act 2012 from the first day of the next financial year. Syed Mushfiqur Rahman, Deputy Project Director of VAT online project (VOP), said businesses will have to apply for the new BIN to the VOP failing which they would not be able to import products with the existing BIN from July 01.
"The VOP has already issued new BIN to 263 large taxpayers under large taxpayers' unit (LTU) south and north VAT commissionerates," he said.
Md Zakir Hossain, another DPD of VOP, said banks, multinational companies, pharmaceutical and mobile companies, cement, cigarette companies, and posh hotels have received the new nine-digit BIN.
Large corporate houses that received the BIN contribute 65 per cent to the total VAT collection, he added.
Mr Hossain said around 95 per cent of the large taxpayers will be covered by March 15 with online BIN.
State-owned Petrobangla, Rural Electrification Board and 100 other entities will get BIN by then, he added.
He said some 150,000 businesses may initially get BIN when the up-and-coming VAT law will take effect.
Currently, there are 840,000 BIN holders in the country. Officials said the number of VAT registrations may be reduced initially due to central registration system under the new law.
Already, VOP has completed test round of online return, payment and accounting-module software.
A business entity will have to register with the VAT department on the basis of its method of accounting instead of existing geographical location. In case of transfer or change of business address, BIN will remain same as before.
In the new VAT law, refund process of additional VAT has been simplified. Businesses can easily claim refund of input tax due to automated account-keeping system in the new law.
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