NBR to plug leakages, widen tax net to meet target

The National Board of Revenue (NBR) is counting on business expansion, a broader tax net, digitalisation and a harder crackdown on evasion to meet its proposed Tk 6.04 lakh crore revenue collection target for FY2026-27.

Speaking at an event on the proposed Finance Bill yesterday, NBR Chairman Abdur Rahman Khan said businesses are passing through a tough time due to lingering impacts of wars and the pandemic.

“The government wants to raise tax collection and create more jobs by stimulating the economy, so NBR tried to address the problems of entrepreneurs,” he said at the programme organised by the Economic Reporters’ Forum in Dhaka.

The proposed target for NBR is about 20 percent higher than the current year’s original target of Tk 5.03 lakh crore, which was later revised to Tk 5.54 lakh crore.

The higher goal for FY27 arrives as the board is faced with a huge shortfall in the current year. Provisional NBR data shows the board collected Tk 3.27 lakh crore through April and needs another Tk 2.27 lakh crore by June 30 to meet its FY26 goal. NBR has failed to meet its goal for 14 consecutive years.

“We have taken many bold steps and we did not consider whether the step will reduce tax collection, but we thought whether it is justified,” the NBR chief said in response to a question regarding how the board will meet its target next year, especially considering the government has proposed tax exemptions for several sectors.

He said if businesses grow as expected, tax collection will rise across all fronts.

The board will simultaneously intensify its drive against leakages to ensure lower evasion, not just higher rates, drives collection growth, he added.

He cited the tobacco sector, the NBR’s single largest revenue source, as a concrete example.

The board plans to introduce “QR and AR codes” on every cigarette packet, allowing consumers to scan and verify whether tax has been paid.

The measure could yield an additional Tk 7,000 crore from the sector alone, he said, with the system to be gradually extended to other products.

On digitalisation, the NBR has simplified and moved the VAT submission process online and digitised corporate tax filing.

“So we will track everybody easily — whether anyone is evading tax,” the chairman said.

He added that by benchmarking against compliant taxpayers within each sector, the system will more readily flag those who are not.

For small and marginal VAT payers, the NBR is introducing a flat-rate VAT calibrated by area and business type, removing the need to maintain detailed accounts – a measure aimed at pulling informal traders into the net without burdening them with compliance costs.

Snehasish Barua, a partner at Snehasish Mahmud & Co, Chartered Accountants, welcomed the business-friendly measures in the budget but urged full implementation and further reductions in individual and corporate tax rates.

The proposed FY27 budget projects a total revenue collection of Tk 6.95 lakh crore, including the NBR’s target. Historically, revenue mobilisation has been one of the country’s weakest policy areas and Bangladesh’s tax-GDP ratio remains among the lowest in Asia.

The event was also addressed by ERF President Doulot Akter Mala, NBR first secretaries Jafar Imam and Md Tarek Hasan, among others.