Deputy commissioners have been instructed to bring doctors in districts, upazilas, and rural areas—who have substantial incomes but evade taxes—under the tax net, Finance Adviser Dr Salehuddin Ahmed said on Monday.
The directive was issued to deputy commissioners during the second session on the second day of the three-day Deputy Commissioners' Conference at the Osmani Memorial Auditorium.
Speaking to reporters after the session, the adviser mentioned that initiatives are being taken to ensure that doctors and lawyers issue receipts or use digital payment methods for their fees, making it easier to bring them under the tax net.
"You know that field-level officials implement any decisions taken by the government. If these officials are efficient and service-oriented, people will receive effective services," the adviser said.
He pointed out that many doctors and lawyers conduct transactions in cash, which makes it difficult to bring them under the tax net.
"Patients do not receive receipts for the fees they pay to doctors. If payments are made digitally, there will be a record, as is the practice abroad," he added.
The adviser also emphasized the need to boost employment at the local level, citing China's example, where rural industries are well-connected globally.
He said: "Products made in a remote Chinese village are available in Walmart stores in the US. Due to a lack of connectivity, products from Bangladesh’s remote areas do not reach global markets."
"We must expand the tax net while keeping VAT and tax rates at a reasonable level. Our industries number around 5 to 6 million, but only 500,000 pay taxes," the adviser added.