The government might announce an amnesty for the fake taxpayers identification number (TIN) holders so they could pay their overdue tax and avert punitive action against them, according to National Board of Revenue (NBR) sources, reports UNB.
"We may announce a time for the fake TIN holders to submit income-tax return against their respective TIN," a high official of the NBR told the news agency.
The revenue-collecting agency took the decision as they found that a considerable number of fake TIN holders were using their TINs for various purposes. An NBR study found fake TINs used in 50 per cent cases of land registration and obtaining credit cards.
The survey shows fake TINs used in about 33 per cent cases of car purchase, 2.38 per cent for opening LCs and 3.92 per cent for availing themselves of bank loan amounting to over Tk 0.5 million.
The NBR conducted the survey in the offices of Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) in Mirpur and Keraniganj, Sub-registrar offices in Uttara, Gulshan, Badda, Dohar, Sutrapur, Keraniganj, Nawabganj, Demra, Tejgaon, Khilgaon, Mohammadpur, Mirpur and Savar, and different branches of banks that issued credit cards.
NBR data showed the number of TIN holders until October 31 of this year as 2,262,885 although only 676,100 people submitted their tax returns for fiscal 2008-09, prompting the agency to go tough to net the tax-dodgers for giving a boost to income-tax collection.
Currently, TIN is mandatory for purchasing land, apartment, house, car and getting credit card.
The matter of fake TIN surfaced during the submission of application for housing plots in Uttara and Purbachal, with innumerable people queuing up in front of designated banks to stake a claim.
Later, the NBR sat with RAJUK to stop the use of fake TIN in applying for plots.
Talking to the agency, NBR Chairman Muhammad Abdul Mazid said to avoid any new fake TIN they already asked the respective officials to issue TIN after income-tax-submission receipts containing Tk 2,000 as minimum tax.
"We are in a move to make it mandatory to avert providing fake TIN and get minimum information about the person who is getting the TIN," he said.
He said that it was true that the use of fake TIN in purchasing land, apartment, house and car and getting credit card was alarming.
"We want to bring all eligible persons on the tax net to increase our income without increasing the tax rate," the NBR chief said.
He also said that the number of income taxpayers would rise to a significant number if all people who availed themselves of car had paid taxes.
NBR is thinking about introducing 'tax-sticker' for car owners to promptly identify if the owner of a particular car is taxpayer or not.
The tax-sticker will be pasted on the windshield of a car as other stickers showing conventional payments.
About the new move, Mazid said the number of cars in the city was huge as per the information available from the BRTA, but the number of taxpayers was not that big.
"We apprehend that many of the car owners are not even enlisted in the tax register."
The NBR was now examining the matter of introducing the new system to identify the taxpayers, Mazid said, adding that they would ask the BRTA to furnish a list of car owners to them.
About the new system, he said car was a wealth and one must pay tax for such wealth. "But many of us don't even bother to show their car in the income-tax-return form. This is ridiculous," he added.
The NBR is now in a tough mood to run in the tax dodgers for increasing its income from income-tax portion of government revenues.
