With a 15.51% year-on-year growth for the first time ever, the National Board of Revenue's (NBR) collection for state coffers beat the Tk300,000 crore milestone in FY22.
According to the NBR provisional data, they deposited Tk300,179 crore to the state coffer in the just-concluded 2021-22 fiscal year.
Despite the growth in collection, the revenue collector was still Tk29,820.92 crore behind its annual target of Tk330,000 crore.
Apart from this, with a significant drop in non-NBR revenue in FY22, the government's overall revenue collection in the just concluded fiscal year stood at Tk3,42,889 crore.
Experts weigh in
After the shock of the Covid-19 pandemic for two consecutive years, the Russia-Ukraine war has created a multi-dimensional crisis around the world. It has also affected Bangladesh. Despite such adversity, economists see the positive trend in the country's revenue income as good news.
At the same time, they advised focusing on the increase of customs and taxes from the domestic sector during the current economic crisis to face the challenges of the upcoming financial year.
According to data analysis, the government's receipts of non-NBR revenue saw a significant drop in the just concluded year.
Seeking anonymity, a Finance Ministry official said: “During the last fiscal year, many of these institutions failed to generate adequate profits or incurred losses due to rising prices in the international market. That was why the collection of such revenue by the government dropped.”
But the Ministry is happy about the overall revenue collection.
The official also said: “15.51% growth in the just-concluded fiscal year amidst the pandemic and Russia-Ukraine war was satisfactory. It indicates that the country's economy is on the path of recovery from the pandemic-induced losses.”
The official said that although they have been aiming to cross the Tk3 lakh crore mark in revenue collection for the last couple of years, this was for the first time that they were able to do it.
Regarding the NBRs revenue collection, former chairman of the National Board of Revenue (NBR) Muhammad Abdul Mazid told Dhaka Tribune: “Collection of more than Tk3 lakh crore is definitely a milestone. However, the tax-GDP ratio is still stuck at 10%.”
“It seems that it will be challenging for the NBR to meet its revenue target for FY23. One of the main reasons for this is that earlier, NBR officials used to set targets considering their own capabilities. As a result, they were very close to achieving the target. But now, a goal is set from the top which may not match the reality on the ground,” he also added.
Collection of NBRs revenue sources
In FY22, income tax collection grew the highest 20.08% to Tk1,02,337 crore, up from Tk85,224 crore in FY21, according to the NBR's provisional data.
The highest growth in terms of income tax indicates a recovery of the domestic economy, said the ministry official, adding that the government was emphasizing enhancing the coverage of the income tax net.
However, receipts of VAT did not see much growth, which contradicts the official's remarks on the revival of the domestic economy.
The collection of VAT, the biggest source of revenue for the government, was up by only 11.19% to Tk1,08,418 crore, against Tk97,507 crore in the previous year.
Meanwhile, receipts from customs tariffs at the import and export stages shot up 15.91% year-on-year to Tk89,423 crore in FY22, compared to Tk77,150 crore in the previous FY21.
Such a rise might have been caused by a hike in import costs due to rising prices in the global market.
Collection from non-NBR revenue
Apart from this, the government's receipts of non-NBR revenue saw a significant drop in the just concluded year.
The government managed to collect Tk36,304 crore as non-NBR revenue in FY22, down from Tk58,856 crore in FY21.
Such a drop in non-NBR revenue receipts was caused by a remarkable decrease in the collection of surplus money from different state-owned autonomous institutions in FY22.
The government earlier enacted a law to use the surplus or unused money deposited in the bank accounts of these state-owned autonomous institutions.
This collection, which stood at Tk39,024 crore in FY21, came down to Tk15,184 crore.
However, the receipts of non-NBR tax saw a slight rise.
The government's collection of non-NBR tax stood at Tk6,406 crore in FY22, up from Tk5,916 crore in the previous year.
So, the government's overall revenue collection in the just concluded fiscal year stood at Tk3,42,889 crore.
Despite the growth in collection, the revenue collector was still Tk29,820.92 crore behind its annual target.