The first nine months of the current fiscal year (FY2018-19) witnessed a Tk50,425 crore revenue shortfall, against a Tk203,845 crore target set for the July-March period.
The National Board of Revenue (NBR) collected Tk153,420 crore from the three sources — income tax, value added tax (VAT) and customs duty, according to the NBR provisional data.
The amount collected in the nine months is 7.1% higher against Tk144,311 crore of the same period of previous year but 24.73% lower against the July-March target.
“Although our officials worked hard in the field, revenue target could not be met in the period,” NBR Chairman Md Mosharraf Hossain Bhuiyan told the Dhaka Tribune.
He claimed that tendency to evade tax by people was the main cause behind the shortfall.
“Some dodge the taxes tactfully, for example, by putting their products on auction, not paying custom duties while importing,” he explained, adding that they (the unscrupulous) later buy these form auction.
Mosharraf, however, said NBR would make all efforts to fulfill the target till the fiscal year conclusion.
The revenue collecting authorities has to earn more Tk127,210 crore by June, the fiscal’s concluding month, to fulfill the revised revenue target of Tk 280,630 crore for the whole fiscal.
The finance ministry revised the revenue target in April, only two month before the fiscal conclusion, and cut it down by Tk15,370 to Tk280,630crore, against the NBR demand to cut Tk50,000 crore from Tk296,000crore actual target.
Meanwhile in the July-March period, the NBR earned Tk46,371 crore from income tax keeping Tk16,692 shortfall from the target.
The exchequer has to earn Tk48,629crore income tax more within in the last three months to fulfill the whole fiscal’s target.
Besides, it has to earn Tk47,082 crore VAT more in April-June period of the current fiscal, while it colleceted Tk60,119 crore VAT in the first nine months.
VAT collection faced Tk18,580crore shortfall from the target, but witnessed 6.4% year-on-year growth.
Besides, NBR losses Tk15,152 crore in customs and excise duties against Tk62,082crore target set for the July-March period, and has to earn Tk31,070crore for by June.
A senior official of NBR said, seeking anonymity, the shortfall stood as the government fixed high revenue target for them.
Besides, he explained three reasons behind the shortfall—duty exemptions on the machineries imported for ongoing government’s mega projects, exemptions for LNG and other gas imports and not implementing VAT online.
“If the issues were not existed, we could fulfill the target,” he added.
Besides, the collection of some outstanding payments from other government agencies like the Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation could increase revenue earnings, the official said.
