Angry Businesspeople Raise Complaints Against NBR

 PNN News Desk | Dhaka

At the “Meet the Business” event organized by the National Board of Revenue (NBR) in Agargaon, Dhaka, businesspeople expressed strong anger over harassment, irregularities, inefficiency, and unreasonable taxation by field-level officials. Representatives of the country’s top businesses and trade organizations attended the meeting.

Private-sector businesspeople highlighted issues such as lack of coordination in advance income tax (AIT), high turnover tax on small businesses, harassment by customs and port authorities in imports and exports, unnecessary lawsuits, procedural hurdles, and complications in bond processes. In particular, restaurant owners criticized NBR officials for excessive scrutiny and risky procedures in lab tests.

Commenting on the matter, NBR Chairman Md. Abdur Rahman Khan said some regulations would be revised to make doing business easier. He added that the new generation of taxpayers would not face discrimination, and the NBR would work closely with commercial banks to simplify the tax payment process.

To highlight the leather industry’s problems, Nasir Khan, Managing Director of Jen’s Footwear Limited, stated that the sector has been kept small, and fake cases prevent industrial growth. In response, the NBR chairman said there are plans to track the performance of field-level officials to ensure accountability.

Preeti Chakraborty, director of BWCCI, mentioned that the abolition of certain income tax law benefits is causing businesses to bear extra interest. She also noted that port authorities are deliberately sending goods to ICDs, resulting in extra costs and delays for exporters.

The NBR stated that non-bonded exporters will be able to release raw materials through bank guarantees, frozen fish exporters may receive bond facilities, and the bond process will be automated. Additionally, corporate tax returns will be submitted online, and a Grievance Redress System (GRS) will be implemented.

The NBR chairman urged businesspeople to actively use the new platforms, take advantage of business facilitation measures, and contribute to increasing revenue collection.