Finance minister Abul Maal Abdul Muhith has instructed the National Board of Revenue to examine the possibility of introducing property tax from the next fiscal year 2015-2016, officials told New Age on Wednesday.
They said that the finance minister, after reviewing the collection of surcharge on wealth from the people belonging to net assets above Tk 2 crore in the last fiscal year, has recently instructed the revenue board to review the impact of surcharge and the scope of introduction of property tax.
Muhith expressed his opinion in favour of imposing property tax instead of the existing wealth surcharge under which people having net assets above Tk 2 crore have to pay surcharge up to 25 per cent starting from 10 per cent on income tax, a high official of the revenue board said.
He said that the income tax wing of the revenue board had already included the issue in their budget exercise for the FY2016.
There was wealth tax in the country till 1999 and the government scrapped the Wealth Tax Act-1969 observing insignificant revenue collection from the sector, and poor compliance and enforcement.
There was also a ceiling of 30 per cent of current income for aggregate income and wealth tax to prevent wealth taxes from rising beyond the threshold, according to a study conducted by Policy Research Group.
The NBR officials said that introduction of property tax was quite complex because of absence of proper valuation method of property in current market price.
So, the government will have to scrutinise the issue properly before imposing the tax, they said.
The revenue board collected Tk 208 crore from 10,152 people having net assets above Tk 2 crore in the FY14 which was Tk 101 crore in the previous year.
Under the existing surcharge law, people having net asset above Tk 2 crore to Tk 10 crore have to pay 10 per cent surcharge in addition to normal payable tax.
Surcharge is applicable at 15 per cent on net asset above Tk 10 crore to Tk 20 crore and 20 per cent on assets above Tk 20 crore to Tk 30 crore and 25 per cent for assets above Tk 30 crore.
Source: New Age
