National Board of Revenue will not allow anyone to run business activities without VAT registration once the new VAT law came into force from July 1, said its chairman Md Mosharraf Hossain Bhuiyan.
He made the comment following a demand of Bangladesh Restaurant Owners’ Association to make business identification number, known as VAT registration number, mandatory for all types of restaurants at a pre-budget discussion held at NBR conference room.
‘We will make a system so that no one can operate businesses without VAT registration,’ Mosharraf said.
The rates of VAT for various sectors will be fixed for traders after registration, he said, adding that the standard rate will be 15 per cent and businesses will get rebate on the rate.
Businesses will not get rebate on paid VAT at lower rate, he added.
He said that businesses should come out of informal transactions and start using electronic fiscal devices.
NBR chairman said that VAT was mandatory for all restaurants, excluding small ones where marginalised people eat.
VAT rate for standard restaurants will be 15 per cent, and for others, the rate will be rationally fixed rationally, he said, adding that NBR would also form a committee to categorise the restaurants.
At the meeting, BROA secretary general Rezaul Karim demanded mandatory VAT registration for all restaurants, including small, medium, irrespective of air-conditioned or not.
The rate should be fixed latter based on their annual turnover, he said, proposing VAT rates at 3 per cent, 6 per cent and 10 per cent respectively based on annual turnovers at Tk 3 crore, Tk 6 crore and above.
Bangladesh Papers Mills Association vice-president Mohammad Yunus demanded preventing sale of papers imported duty-free under bonded warehouse facility in market.
The association also demanded increasing import duty on various types of papers to protect domestic industry as local millers were able to meet domestic demand.
Tourism Development Association of Bangladesh representative Syed Habib Ali sought duty benefits on import of transports for tourists to develop the country’s tourism.
Representatives from Bangladesh Association of International Recruiting Agencies, Bangladesh Security Services Companies Owners’ Association, Courier Services Association of Bangladesh, and Money Changers Association of Bangladesh, among others, were present at the meeting.
Source: New Age.
