The government is reviewing a proposal of the aviation regulator to waive payment of non-tax income after a push from the agency, a finance ministry official said.
The Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh is under obligation to pay Tk 550 million in non-tax revenue this year.
"We've recently received a proposal from the civil aviation ministry asking for the exemption from the non-tax revenue of the CAAB," a finance ministry official said.
The official, who is not authorised to speak to the media, said the proposal has been sent to the relevant official for scrutiny.
The CAAB is pressing for the waiver, arguing the payment will put strain on its finances to fund the projects being undertaken for the development of the aviation industry.
Its officials said the waiver on payment of non-tax income is crucial in view of the safety and security at the country's airports.
A senior CAAB official said the regulator sent the waiver request to help it run its smooth operation.
"It's pretty important. The exemption will help us run our functions smoothly," the authority's finance member Mizanur Rahman told the FE.
Some Tk 472.5 million has to be repaid in the current financial year against its loans for different projects.
Presently, six development projects are being implemented with its own fund of Tk 9.59 billion while one development project is going on with foreign funds worth Tk 5.82 billion, the CAAB data showed.
The aviation authority needs to provide Tk 1.98 billion and Tk 2.27 billion to its different development projects for the FY 2014-15 and 2015-16 respectively.
At present, the regulator is meeting its staff salaries and allowances and other revenue expenses from its own fund.
Some Tk 400 to 500 million has to be deposited with the government treasury as non-tax income.
The CAAB has been paying corporate tax since 2012 financial year. And it has to pay around Tk 1.75 billion to the National Board of Revenue (NRB) every year as corporate tax, according to the letter.
The government set corporate tax rate at 37.5 per cent on the CAAB income for the FYs 2011-12, 2012-13, 2013-14 and 25 per cent for the current fiscal year.
In this circumstance, it is quite impossible to provide NTR to the government treasury after payments for staff salaries and allowance, repairs and maintenance and development expenditures, they said.
Development projects of the state-run entity will be hampered if it is to pay non-tax revenue and corporate tax simultaneously.
The top boss of the CAAB has sent a letter to the ministry for the waiver, Md. Towhid Hasanat Khan, Director (Finance) of the CAAB, told the FE Tuesday.
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