The National Board of Revenue (NBR) has turned down the BTRC plea for exempting it from payment of income tax on its annual income, as all state entities are on the tax-net now.
If tax waiver is not allowed, the Bangladesh Telecommunications Regulatory Commission (BTRC) would have to pay some Tk 10 billion in income tax for the current fiscal year. The government has put the state-owned entity on the tax-net in the budget for current fiscal year along with other local authorities.
With effect from July 2014, the NBR has imposed corporate tax at a rate of 25 per cent on the income of BTRC and other state-owned entities.
Following imposition of the tax, the telecom regulator has urged the revenue board to exclude it from the payment of income tax for its being a state-owned entity.
The income-tax-policy wing of the NBR has declined to accept the plea of the BTRC by sending a letter. Dated August 31, the letter was signed by second secretary of the wing Md Jasimuddin Ahmed.
According to the Income Tax Ordinance 1984, and the Telecommunications Regulatory Law 2001, BTRC is a taxable entity and was never exempted from payment of income tax, says the letter.
In the current FY budget, the NBR has included 29 autonomous bodies under 25 per cent tax slab, by allowing them to enjoy a reduced rate from the regular rate of 35 per cent.
The Finance Bill 2014 has also incorporated a section, 52V, into the income-tax ordinance on deduction of tax at source at 10 per cent by mobile-phone operators against payment of different fees to the BTRC.
Officials said the NBR will adjust the tax at source with the actual payable annual tax of the BTRC.
Mobile operators pay different fees to the BTRC such as Spectrum Assignment Fees, License Acquisition Fees, Application Fees, annual licence fees, licence renewal fees, charges on revenue sharing, social obligation fund and so.
The NBR cited the telecommunications regulatory law against the claim of the BTRC as a 'non-taxable entity'.
"There is no scope to consider BTRC as non-taxable entity as it bears its entire expenditure from its own funds for six months and deposit it to the public exchequer after that period," said a senior official of the revenue board.
Other agencies, including Dhaka WASA, Bangladesh Civil Aviation Authority, Bangladesh Bridge Authority, Chittagong Port Authority and Petrobangla, also carried out their expenditures from their own funds before depositing the money with the public exchequer.
All of those entities are considered taxable and they are paying taxes as per existing rules, he added.
In the letter, the NBR urged the BTRC to cooperate with it in smooth collection of income tax from the entities.
Officials said tax authorities expect highest taxes from the BTRC among the local authorities as it earns a considerable amount of revenues compared to that of others.
The large taxpayers unit (LTU) estimates some Tk 10 billion income tax from BTRC in the FY 2014-15.
NBR turns down BTRC plea for tax waiver
Doulot Akter Mala | Published: September 03, 2014 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2024 06:01:00
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