Govt servants must submit tax info with salary bills

Staff members of government, semi-government and autonomous bodies mandatorily have to furnish tax-return-submission information in their respective salary bills for a period of six months, starting from January next, as a proof of compliance.   
Officials said the National Board of Revenue (NBR) made the mandatory provision to ensure compliance with the income-tax law.        
The organisations concerned have to submit such tax proofs with their monthly salary bills from January to June 2017 if the employees' monthly salary exceeds Tk 16,000.
The income-tax-policy wing of the NBR recently dispatched a request to the controller general of accounts to verify inclusion of the documents with the salary bills.
In the current fiscal year (FY) budget, the NBR has made submission of income-tax returns mandatory for government, semi-government and autonomous entities' employees and officers who draw minimum Tk 16,000 as monthly salary.
Income tax is deducted at source from the salary bills of the government employees and officials.
They will have to submit the tax returns by the deadline for individuals' tax-return submission, November 30, which expires tomorrow (Wednesday).
"It is necessary to ensure submission of income-tax returns by the government officials and see their compliance with the income-tax law," says the letter.
The government officials have to attach their Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN), serial number of acknowledgement receipt of tax returns and the date of return submission to the monthly salary bills.
If any of the officials of government, semi-government and autonomous bodies submit time petition, they have to furnish all details like date, serial number, circle, and tax zone with the salary bills.
Officials who are authorised to verify or approve the salary bills of the CAG office will scrutinise and ensure availability of those documents.
A senior income-tax official said the government officials not having those details will face difficulty in drawing salary from December onwards.
"They have either to submit tax returns or time petition by the deadline to avoid any untoward situation," he said.
Tax officials estimate an additional 135,000 public servants as new taxpayers in the current fiscal following the implementation of the Pay Scale 2015.
The NBR estimation shows around 65,000 Class-I officers from grade nine above and around 70,000 Class-II officers up to grade 10 will have to pay income tax from the FY 2016-2017 as their salaries exceeded the tax-free income limit of Tk 250,000 due to the pay hike.
Government employees started receiving hiked basic salary under the Pay Scale 2015 from January this year with arrears from July 2015.
The new pay scale came into force from July this year.
In case of failure in submission of tax returns by the deadline, the officials, like other individual taxpayers have to pay 2.0 per cent penalty on the payable tax for per-month delay.
Even for time petition, the taxpayers have to pay a penal tax for the first time this year.
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