Bangladesh Chamber of Industries (BCI) and Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI) on Wednesday demanded tax holiday for new cottage, micro, small and medium entrepreneurs to offset the adverse impact of Covid-19 pandemic.
They made the demands placing tax proposals for the budget for 2021-22 at a meeting with Chairman of National Board of Revenue (NBR) Abu Hena Md Rahmatul Muneem in the revenue board, said a press release.

The chamber leaders also demanded other tax and VAT related facilities for a certain period. They placed a number of proposals at the pre-budget meeting.
BCI president Anwar ul Alam Chowdhury Parvez proposed tax facilities to small, cottage and micro industries. He said, “Once those become a bit bigger, then tax could be imposed on them,”
DCCI President Rizwan Rahman placed a 37-point recommendation on this occasion demanding reduction of VAT and corporate tax reduction at different slabs.
Besides, he also suggested reducing fine in case of any fault in HS code, fixing the ceiling of turnover tax to Taka three crore and its rate at 4 percent, reducing advance income tax at 4 percent in case of import of raw materials.
It must be also so for other equipments for Industries while scrapping the provision for mandatory VAT registration even though the annual turnover of a business establishment does not range between Taka 50 lakh to Taka 3 crore per year.

Earlier, Bangladesh Private medical College Association president MA Mubin Khan demanded withdraw the existing 15 percent income tax on this sector.
The DCCI laid emphasis on the need for widening the tax net and called for ensuring application of automated tax system to recover the economy.
The DCCI proposals aimed at reviving post-Covid business confidence and make sure an easy and business friendly tax structure, widening tax and VAT net which will be able to achieve export diversification and encouraging local industrialization in investment friendly environment.
DCCI has therefore proposed to reduce corporate tax for listed and non-listed companies at a progressive rate of 2.5 percent, 5 percent and 7 percent over the next three years.
The DCCI suggested corporate tax for non-listed companies at 30 percent in FY2021-22 and 27.5 percent in FY2022-23 and 25 percent in FY2024-25. It has also proposed to allow 10 percent tax instead of 20 percent on income of corporate dividend.
Besides, if any company invests 5 percent of its taxable income on research and development, this investment should be tax free, the chamber body suggested.
Only 24 lakh tax payers submit their tax return this year out of 50 lakh registered tax payers. DCCI, therefore, proposes to make the revenue structure fully automated.
As per Finance Act 2020, in most cases, in the service sector, 15 percent VAT and VAT at source is to be deducted. The DCCI wants withdrawal of this VAT cut at source.
Excise duty has been imposed twice at the time of getting loan from banks. The DCCI proposes to withdraw this system.
NBR Chairman Abu Hena Md. Rahmatul Muneem said industries and businesses to be more compliant. NBR will try to consider these proposals, he told the chamber leaders.