Economy
6 years ago

Cabinet sends back income tax law for further review

NBR hiring two external experts for draft recasting after cabinet returned it for incorporating int'l best practices

File photo shows the head office of the National Board of Revenue at Segunbagicha in capital Dhaka.
File photo shows the head office of the National Board of Revenue at Segunbagicha in capital Dhaka.

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Government's revenue authority began redrafting a new income-tax law after its draft was returned by the cabinet for plugging the holes that may drain taxes.

 

The National Board of Revenue (NBR) recently placed 'The Income Tax Law 2017' for cabinet endorsement for transforming the existing Income Tax Ordinance 1984 into law.

 

Officials said the authorities instructed the board to incorporate the international best practices into the law as preamble of the draft placed in the cabinet needs further review.

 

The NBR has included all amendments between July 1984 and June 30, 2017 period, enforced through Finance Acts, in the law for making the ordinance into law.

 

In its recent meeting the cabinet also directed the income-tax department to place a new income-tax law which would be in Bangla.

 

Officials said the NBR sent the 'Income tax law 2017' before cabinet to transform existing ordinance following a legal challenge against enforcing the income-tax provision under an ordinance.

 

Special rules promulgated from 24 March 1982 to 11 November 1986 through 'Ordinance Effective (special rules) Law 2013' were challenged in the Supreme Court through writ petition.

 

Following the petition, the income-tax authority sent the ordinance as income-tax law for cabinet approval.

 

The last cabinet meeting on August 21, 2017 directed the Internal Resources Division (IRD) to frame the Income Tax Law 2017 in international market through quotation.

 

A Singaporean company, Regington International, won the contract to supply the rice at the total cost of Tk 1.97 billion as its per metric tonne price has been fixed at $407.89.

 

The meeting, held with Finance Minister AMA Muhith in the chair, gave the approval amid the growing concern over the possible food grain shortage due to the loss of crops in countrywide flooding.

 

The government has already withdrawn duty on rice import and also declared some banking facilities to encourage the import of food grains in the private sector.

 

Last week, the Cabinet body approved a similar proposal for the import of 150,000 tonnes of food grain.

 

The cabinet body approved six separate tender proposals of Rural Electrification Board (REB) to procure 21 sub-stations of 33/11 kV capacity for its different projects.

 

Of these, local supplier EnergyPac won the five contracts to supply 18 sub-stations at the total price of Tk 1.19 billion while another local company, Sunrise Energy, won one contract to supply three sub-stations at a cost of Tk 201.1 million.

 

However, another tender proposal for procuring two sub-stations went unapproved as the REB was asked to resubmit the proposal.

 

Power Division's proposal for awarding a project to a local company, United Enterprise, to set up a 115 MW HFO-based power plant on build-own-operate basis at Jamalpur district got the committee's nod.

 

The state-owned Power Development Board (PDB) will purchase electricity from the plant for the next 15 years at a tariff of Tk 8.7312 per kilowatt hour.

 

Power Division's two more proposals to extend the tenure of the contract to buy electricity from two rental power plants received the approval of the cabinet body.

 

Of these, Precision Energy's 55 MW gas-based rental power plant's contract was extended for another five years with a new tariff of Tk 2.90 per unit against the previous tariff of Tk 2.91 per unit.

 

PowerPac Mutiara Keraniganj 100 MW HFO-based power plant's contract tenure was extended for five years with a new tariff of Tk 11.52 per unit against the previous tariff of Tk 11.63 per unit.

 

The cabinet body approved a pricing formula and contract document for import of LNG (liquified natural gas) for 15 years from RasGas Company of Qatar.

 

A proposal of the Railway Ministry to appoint a consultant for the construction of single-line dual-gauge rail-track from Dohazari to Gondum board with Myanmar via Ramu of Cox's Bazar also received the committee approval.

 

It also approved a proposal of the Energy Division to import 16,000 tonnes of octane from Indonesia under a government-to-government deal. The premium for the petroleum import was fixed at $4.55 per barrel.

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