The Newspaper Owners' Association of Bangladesh (Noab) has called for the withdrawal of various duties and taxes considering the dire condition of the newspaper industry.
They presented their proposal during a meeting with the National Board of Revenue (NBR) ahead of the national budget on Wednesday, said a media statement.
Noab expressed deep concern over the challenging situation faced by the newspaper industry, particularly due to the advancement of digital and social media platforms as well as the Covid-19 pandemic.
Noab President AK Azad highlighted in a statement that the significant reduction in advertisements and circulation during the pandemic has made it impossible to bridge the financial gap solely through advertisement income.
He noted that a year ago, the price of imported newsprint was $570 per ton with an exchange rate of Tk85, but now it has risen to over $700 with an exchange rate of Tk109.
Furthermore, the current economic situation has added to the industry's hardships, Azad added.
In this context, the Noab president stated: "Currently, newspapers face a 5% import duty along with a value-added tax (VAT) of 15%, additional income tax (AIT) of 5%, and advanced tax (AT) of 5%. When accounting for insurance, banking, and transportation costs, the overall duty burden reaches 30%. We strongly believe that the withdrawal of these duties is essential to safeguard the newspaper industry."
Despite being part of the service industry, newspapers are classified as private limited companies, unregistered companies, and non-residential categories, subjecting them to a fixed corporate tax rate of 30%. Noab has proposed a reduced corporate tax rate of 10-15% specifically for newspapers.
Currently, a tax deduction at source (TDS) of 4% is levied on newspaper advertisement income, along with AIT of 5%, amounting to a total of 9%. However, most newspapers do not earn a dividend of 9% from their total income. Therefore, Noab has requested a reduction in TDS on newspaper advertisement income from 4% to 2% and the elimination of the 5% duty on raw materials.
AK Azad said: "Given the current situation, it has become necessary to allocate a portion of government incentives to support the newspaper industry."
Noab has also urged the government to include the newspaper industry in the incentives announced in the budget for the fiscal year 2023-24.
