As FY27 has begun, and taxpayers have been eligible to submit their income tax returns since the beginning of July. In the new budget, a decision was made to offer up to a 5% tax rebate for individuals who file their income tax returns between July 1 and September 30.
However, even though two weeks of July have already passed, the National Board of Revenue (NBR) has yet to update its online return submission system.
NBR officials stated that work is currently underway to input various income tax changes introduced in the new budget, and the issue will be resolved shortly.
NBR member Md Rafiqul Islam said: "Our team started working on this even before the budget was passed last June. It might take a few more days."
However, requesting anonymity, a senior NBR official told Dhaka Tribune: "All the new elements of the budget must be inputted into the e-return server. After that, it will be tested before being opened to taxpayers. Opening the server without fully completing the work would cause various complications for taxpayers. The new chairman has also directed us to finish the work quickly and flawlessly."
Several officials involved in the project claimed that aligning and integrating all the budget changes into the server is time-consuming.
They also mentioned that they are taking their time to ensure taxpayers do not face any hassle while paying taxes.
On Monday (July 13), a visit to the e-return website revealed that the window for submitting returns for the new FY27 has not yet been launched. Only the options for submitting returns for FY25 and FY26 remain active.
This year, the tax-free income threshold for individual taxpayers has been raised to Tk4 lakh.
Additionally, the minimum tax rate, which was previously 5%, has been increased to 10%.
Furthermore, taxpayers have been given the opportunity to file income tax returns throughout the year for the current FY27, with incentives offered for early filing.
Major changes have also been made regarding investors in savings certificates (Sanchayapatra).
Previously, the tax deducted at source on profits from these investments was treated as the final tax liability.
This meant taxpayers did not have to pay any additional tax on this income when filing their year-end returns.
However, this privilege has been scrapped starting this year. Instead, the tax deducted at source will now be treated as advance income tax (AIT).
Consequently, when filing returns, taxpayers will have to pay taxes on this income according to their respective tax slabs.
Other notable budget changes include an increase in the tax rate for motor vehicles, a hike in advance income tax for brick kilns, a doubling of advance income tax on luxury cars, a reduction in the tax deducted at source on export incentives with taxes now levied at a fixed rate against income, tax exemptions for electric vehicles, and treating gold as capital.
Commenting on the matter, Ashraf Hossain Khan, General Secretary of the Dhaka Taxes Bar Association, said: "Many changes have been introduced to income tax in the new budget. That is likely why it is taking time. However, until the e-return submission system becomes operational, steps should be taken so that taxpayers can submit paper-based manual returns."
According to available data, around 4.65 million taxpayers submitted their returns online and offline during the previous 2025–26 tax year.
