Three banks, GP major income taxpayers in FY '07
Tuesday, 7 August 2007
Shakhawat Hossain
Four companies, including three commercial banks and one cellular phone operator paid more than Tk 1.0 billion each as income tax marking a new era in the country's revenue collection.
"The amount of income tax paid by StanChart, HSBC, Islami Bank Bangladesh Limited and GrameenPhone each crossed the Tk 1.0 billion mark in the 2006-07 fiscal," said a senior National Board Revenue (NBR) official.
This is for an individual the first time company operating in the country paid such a big amount as income tax. Although the board receives much higher amount of revenue from different companies but that is collected in the form of Value Added Tax (VAT) tax, he added.
None of the top income tax payers are, however, fully owned local companies except the Islami Bank.
GrameenPhone is a joint venture and Islami Bank is a local company while StanChart and HSBC are multinational companies.
Such development is, however, seen by the revenue officials as a positive development so far as payment of income tax by the country's corporate houses are concerned.
Sources said the income tax payment by the GrameenPhone will be the highest among the companies if the NBR calculated the 'withholding' tax worth Tk 500 million paid by different entities that provided services to country's largest cell phone operator.
The revenue board expects that the number of companies paying income tax of Tk 1.0 billion and above would be doubled in the current fiscal as at least another four to five companies paid income tax in excess of Tk 900 million in the just concluded fiscal year.
The existing policy of NBR relating to income tax of big clients through its large taxpayers' unit (LTU) has enabled the corporate houses to change their attitude.
Formed in 2003 at the recommendation of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the exclusive NBR wing last fiscal dealt with more than 270 companies that included banking and financial institutions and cell phone operators.
The LTU last fiscal collected around Tk 31.00 billion, more than one third of the total income tax collection of about Tk 85.00 billion. The income tax LTU has been given a 225.5 per cent higher target in the current fiscal compared to that of the previous fiscal.
Experts said it will be difficult for the Grameen to maintain such profit margin from the current fiscal due to intense competition among the cell phone operators.
They, however, predict sustainability of higher profit margin by the cell phone operator through the successful marketing of its internet facility.
There is no major risk for the banking companies on their higher profit margin following robust inflow of remittance by the expatriate Bangladeshis and readymade garment export growth, expert said.
Besides, bankers are hoping for good business in the current fiscal as financial transactions in the banking channel almost doubled in the last six months.
Four companies, including three commercial banks and one cellular phone operator paid more than Tk 1.0 billion each as income tax marking a new era in the country's revenue collection.
"The amount of income tax paid by StanChart, HSBC, Islami Bank Bangladesh Limited and GrameenPhone each crossed the Tk 1.0 billion mark in the 2006-07 fiscal," said a senior National Board Revenue (NBR) official.
This is for an individual the first time company operating in the country paid such a big amount as income tax. Although the board receives much higher amount of revenue from different companies but that is collected in the form of Value Added Tax (VAT) tax, he added.
None of the top income tax payers are, however, fully owned local companies except the Islami Bank.
GrameenPhone is a joint venture and Islami Bank is a local company while StanChart and HSBC are multinational companies.
Such development is, however, seen by the revenue officials as a positive development so far as payment of income tax by the country's corporate houses are concerned.
Sources said the income tax payment by the GrameenPhone will be the highest among the companies if the NBR calculated the 'withholding' tax worth Tk 500 million paid by different entities that provided services to country's largest cell phone operator.
The revenue board expects that the number of companies paying income tax of Tk 1.0 billion and above would be doubled in the current fiscal as at least another four to five companies paid income tax in excess of Tk 900 million in the just concluded fiscal year.
The existing policy of NBR relating to income tax of big clients through its large taxpayers' unit (LTU) has enabled the corporate houses to change their attitude.
Formed in 2003 at the recommendation of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the exclusive NBR wing last fiscal dealt with more than 270 companies that included banking and financial institutions and cell phone operators.
The LTU last fiscal collected around Tk 31.00 billion, more than one third of the total income tax collection of about Tk 85.00 billion. The income tax LTU has been given a 225.5 per cent higher target in the current fiscal compared to that of the previous fiscal.
Experts said it will be difficult for the Grameen to maintain such profit margin from the current fiscal due to intense competition among the cell phone operators.
They, however, predict sustainability of higher profit margin by the cell phone operator through the successful marketing of its internet facility.
There is no major risk for the banking companies on their higher profit margin following robust inflow of remittance by the expatriate Bangladeshis and readymade garment export growth, expert said.
Besides, bankers are hoping for good business in the current fiscal as financial transactions in the banking channel almost doubled in the last six months.