Foreign workers under close NBR watch
Sunday, 28 December 2008
FE Report
Foreign residents are under close watch of revenue board after the government withdrew the tax-exemption facility in the current fiscal budget.
The National Board of Revenue (NBR) is collecting lists of all foreign workers from the Bangladesh Export Processing Zone Authority (BEPZA), Board of Investment (BoI), multinational and international organisations to have an assessment on tax collection from them.
The board is trying to get an idea about how many foreign experts, who had been enjoying the tax waiver given for first three years, are under the tax net, a senior revenue official said.
In the current fiscal, the government has withdrawn the opportunity for foreign residents as it has found gross irregularities in availing of the facility, he said.
Although the facility was given only for foreign experts, all foreign workers were taking the facility without approval of the revenue board.
"We will cross-check the figure with our information on how long they are working in the Bangladesh and with which company," the official said.
Even, there were no specific data on how many foreign residents have enjoyed the opportunity and how many are eligible to pay taxes.
According to income tax rule, foreign workers or experts are not entitled to enjoy the existing tax-exemption ceiling that starts from Tk 1,65,000. They will have to pay tax at a rate of 25 per cent on their income.
"It is one of the most potential areas from which the revenue board could collect a considerable amount of income tax," the revenue board official said.
With the booming growth of telecom and ICT sector, a noticeable number of foreign experts and workers are working in Bangladesh, he said.
It has been found that employers usually hide their actual remuneration by showing major part of their income as expenditure or obtain new work permit with the co-operation of local officials concerned, he said.
The revenue board's scrutiny will thwart such illegal practices of tax evasion from this year, he added.
Foreign residents are under close watch of revenue board after the government withdrew the tax-exemption facility in the current fiscal budget.
The National Board of Revenue (NBR) is collecting lists of all foreign workers from the Bangladesh Export Processing Zone Authority (BEPZA), Board of Investment (BoI), multinational and international organisations to have an assessment on tax collection from them.
The board is trying to get an idea about how many foreign experts, who had been enjoying the tax waiver given for first three years, are under the tax net, a senior revenue official said.
In the current fiscal, the government has withdrawn the opportunity for foreign residents as it has found gross irregularities in availing of the facility, he said.
Although the facility was given only for foreign experts, all foreign workers were taking the facility without approval of the revenue board.
"We will cross-check the figure with our information on how long they are working in the Bangladesh and with which company," the official said.
Even, there were no specific data on how many foreign residents have enjoyed the opportunity and how many are eligible to pay taxes.
According to income tax rule, foreign workers or experts are not entitled to enjoy the existing tax-exemption ceiling that starts from Tk 1,65,000. They will have to pay tax at a rate of 25 per cent on their income.
"It is one of the most potential areas from which the revenue board could collect a considerable amount of income tax," the revenue board official said.
With the booming growth of telecom and ICT sector, a noticeable number of foreign experts and workers are working in Bangladesh, he said.
It has been found that employers usually hide their actual remuneration by showing major part of their income as expenditure or obtain new work permit with the co-operation of local officials concerned, he said.
The revenue board's scrutiny will thwart such illegal practices of tax evasion from this year, he added.