BTRC proposes reducing VAT, tax on ICT

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FE Report
The country's telecom regulator proposed reducing VAT (value added tax) and tax on ICT (information and communication technology), so that people of the country could easily get its facilities.
Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) suggested cutting tax on SIM (subscribers' identification module) cards to zero per cent and VAT on Internet users to zero per cent from 15 per cent. The proposal has already been sent to the relevant parliamentary committee for scrutiny. Presently, the telecom operators are paying Tk 800 as tax for each SIM card.
"We've already submitted a proposal of reducing VAT and tax on ICT sector to the parliamentary committee and I hope the committee will approve it for the sake of the government's vision of making a digital Bangladesh by 2021," BTRC Chairman Brig Gen (retd) Zia Ahmed told reporters at a press conference.
BTRC has organised the press conference at its headquarters Wednesday on the eve of celebrating World Telecommunication and Information Society Day (WTISD), which would be celebrated on May 17 in the port city of Chittagong.
The event is going to be celebrated outside the capital for the first time in a bid to popularise the ICT concept even among people living in the remote areas.