The revenue board has launched a single-page income tax return form for small taxpayers in an attempt to simplify submission.
The form has recently been introduced by issuing a gazetteto make the return filing easier.
Many people having income below the taxable range of Tk 0.3 million will have to submit tax returns from this fiscal year as the tax authority has made the return filing mandatory for all TIN holders in the budget.
The number of TIN holders in Bangladesh is about 4.6 million, but less than half submit tax returns.
Individual taxpayers having taxable income and gross wealth not exceeding Tk 0.4 million and Tk 4.0 million respectively are eligible to file tax return in one-page return form from in line with the income tax ordinance-1984.
But taxpayers exceeding the threshold would have to submit tax returns in a regular form with required information and statements.
However, a taxpayer, who owns a motor car or has an investment in house property or in apartment in any city corporation area, will not be eligible for using the one-page tax returns.
A senior income tax official said the marginal taxpayers will be able to submit tax returns in that form furnishing little information about them.
"Marginal taxpayers would not need help of any middlemen, lawyers or income tax practitioners to fill outthe tax return forms," the official said.
They would not have to bear unnecessary cost to pay fees to lawyers for filing tax returns as this form is easy to fill up, he added.
In the form, an individual taxpayer will have to furnish the information of his or her total taxable income, gross wealth, amount of tax, name of bank and challannumber, source of income, among other general information including name, present and permanent addresses, TIN, assessment year and name and circle of tax zone.
The taxpayer will have to make a voluntary declaration that they are eligible for the one page return form and they do not have motor car and investment in house property or in apartment in city corporation area.
With the introduction of such a return form, the submission of assets and lifestyle statement with the income tax returns becomes optional for individual taxpayers with gross assets below Tk 4.0 million, officials said.
Until FY2020, taxpayers having gross assets of Tk 2.5 million were exempted from filing the statement of assets, liabilities and lifestyle with the annual returns.
Field-level tax officials said the provision for mandatory submission of tax returns by all TIN holders, except for land sellers and credit cardholders, may through some people, including bank depositors, housewives and senior citizens into trouble.
They said the field-level tax offices lack capacity, logistics and manpower to handle such a large volume of tax returns.
There could be a certain level of exemption on the return filing instead of making it mandatory for all TIN holders as TIN is mandatory for obtaining numerous types of services in both public and private entities, they argued.
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