A nearly 15-percent tax growth until May of the passing fiscal year generates hope in the taxmen about getting close to a revised revenue target, with a big haul in June.
The tax-revenue collection in the past eleven months of the FY2023-24 left a nominal shortfall of Tk 13.62 billion against period's goal.
"Such impressive growth in tax-revenue collection has raised hope among the revenue officials about reaching close to the revised target at Tk 4.10 trillion," says one revenue official.
Though think-tanks and economists have predicted around Tk 300-billion shortfall in tax-revenue collection by the fiscal yearend, the revenue officials seem confident to go great guns to get close to the goal.
To achieve the revised target, the NBR would have to collect Tk 852.61 billion in the month of June 2024 alone. On average, it collects around Tk 300 billion monthly.
Until May, the target for the National Board of Revenue (NBR) was Tk 3.25 trillion while the receipt was Tk 3.24 trillion in the taxmen's geared-up chase for revenue.
The shortfall was comparatively large--worth Tk 219.30 billion--in the first three quarters (3Qs) of the outgoing FY against the revised target for the period.
Income-tax collection made a quantum jump by 18.09 per cent in the July-May period while VAT 16.35 per cent and import and export taxes 9.46 per cent.
Officials say the gap between target and collection got minimized as the NBR realized a significant amount of pending revenues that remained undisputed for long.
Petrobangla paid Tk 50 billion in tax arrears recently which would add up to the tax-collection data for June.
Both Petrobangla and Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC) owe Tk 550 billion in arrears to the NBR.
In the last half of the FY, the taxmen realized a big chunk of pending revenue from private universities.
For the imminent FY 2024-25, the government sets a target of Tk 4.80 trillion for the NBR, eyeing a 17.07-percent growth over the current revised target.
However, original target for the revenue board in FY 24 was Tk 4.30 trillion.
For FY25, both income tax and VAT wings of the NBR have to collect Tk 1.77 trillion (Tk 177,600) in revenue while customs wing Tk 1.24 trillion (Tk 124,800).
In the first three quarters, until March 2024, the NBR had pooled Tk 2.59 trillion in tax revenue, 63.36 per cent of its revised target at Tk 4.10 trillion for this year.
NBR data show the revenue collection was lagging behind of its revised target by 36.63 per cent in 3Qs.
Last year, the NBR's tax-collection target was Tk 3.70 trillion. Average tax-collection growth was 10.64 per cent in 3Q. Revenue growth was 8.30 per cent in the same period last year.
© 2024 - All Rights with The Financial Express
