GP, Banglalink pay Tk 1.52b in 4G VAT

Two leading mobile phone operators -- Grameenphone and Banglalink -- have paid Tk 1.52 billion in Value Added Tax (VAT) on their spectrum acquisition fee for 4G, reports BSS.

Bangladesh Telecommu-nication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) deposited the amount to the Large Taxpayer Unit (LTU) of the National Board of Revenue (NBR), said a NBR official.

Robi, another mobile phone operator, however, did not clear the VAT worth Tk 170 million.

"Last week, Grameen-phone and Banglalink paid Tk 1.52 billion to BTRC. A cheque for the amount was handed over to the LTU today (Monday)," LTU commissioner Md Matiur Rahman told BSS.

He said the mobile phone operators had to pay VAT before introducing 4G service, but they did not do so. The LTU filed cases against them, he added.

The LTU commissioner said if Robi fails to pay VAT by next week, its bank account would be frozen.

BTRC handed over 4G/LTE licence on February 19 to mobile phone operators which started offering the faster internet services the same day.