Government's revenue authority observed a bleak scenario of obtaining new VAT-registration numbers with only 26.5 per cent of the existing businesses having registered so far, although old ones will be invalid soon.
Those businesses who submit VAT returns are still running their business operations with the old business identification numbers (BIN) heading to be invalidated from July 01, 2017.
In a countrywide analysis until June 02, the National Board of Revenue (NBR) found 9,768 existing business units having obtained the new online BINs, out of 36,858.
Although the number of existing BIN-holders is 864,000 but only 4.27 per cent of them submit VAT returns regularly.
Considering the VAT-return filers as active VAT-payers the NBR found 42.45 per cent of the total new BIN-holders from the existing businesses. Some 23,009 businesses had obtained new BIN through IVAS system until last Friday.
Following such lukewarm response, NBR chairman MD Nojibur Rahman Sunday instructed all field-level VAT offices to motivate truant businesses for re-registering with the new VAT system.
The new VAT and Supplementary Duty Act 2012 is going to be enforced from July 01, 2017. The new law would introduce a digitized VAT system. The existing BIN will stand invalid under the new system.
"Businesses will not be able to import or open letters of credits and do many other works without having a new BIN," said one revenue official, quoting the new provision.
The NBR instructed the field-level VAT offices to ensure obtaining new nine-digit BIN by their respective businesses by June 15, 2017.
The NBR directed the VAT commissioners to take necessary steps with the help of the deputy commissioners of the districts and divisional commissioners to rope in the businesses who have yet to obtain the new BIN.
As the new VAT law is going to be implemented from July 01, all of the existing businesses must obtain new BIN for averting hindrances to revenue collection and business operations.
Under the digitized VAT system, the existing BIN registration would automatically fall invalid from midnight on June 30, 2017.
The NBR also instructed the VAT offices to prepare their respective BIN-holders for maintaining digitized accounting system.
In the letter, the NBR chairman observed the submission of returns by both the existing BIN-holders and new ones was "not satisfactory".
The NBR sent a detailed list of 36,858 BIN-holders each in all 12 VAT commissionerates across the country.
Dhaka South VAT commissinerate has 9,878 VAT-registered businesses, the highest return-submitting BIN-holders.
Among the major VAT offices, Dhaka North VAT Commissionerate has 8,990 followed by Dhaka East 4456, Dhaka West 3617, Chittagong VAT commissinerate 2600, VAT commissinerate in Sylhet 2,284 BIN-holders.
All of the 156 BIN businesses under the Large Taxpayers Unit (LTU) obtained new BIN under IVAS system.
The government introduced the IVAS system on March 23 last for online BIN receipt.
Meanwhile, the revenue board also instructed field offices to furnish the data of existing and new BIN-holders every day to the NBR for a daily update on the switchover.
The NBR also prepared a checklist and formed a four-member monitoring committee for VAT-law implementation.
As per the list, all of the regular return-filers must re-register by June 15, 2017, building team in commissionerates by June 07, bringing account current to zero for all exiting registered businesses except tobacco companies by June 30, impart training and procuring logistics, motivation activity etc.
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