Cab owners want 5pc duty on import: BAIRA seeks
tax-free FC Pass Fund

Leaders of Cab Association of Bangladesh (CAB) urged the
National Board of Revenue (NBR) to reduce tax from 20 percent to 5 percent for
importing taxi cab.

They also requested the government to provide permission to
import taxi cab with 1480cc capacity.

The CAB association leaders placed their proposals at a
pre-budget meeting with the revenue board at the NBR office in the city Sunday
last.

Besides, leaders of the Bangladesh Association of
International Recruiting Agencies (BAIRA), Bangladesh Security Services
Companies Owners Association, Bangladesh Security Services Companies Owners
Association and Bangladesh Supermarket Owners' Association attended the
meeting.

With participation the discussion, Khandaker
Mahmudur Azad, President of Cab said in various
reasons NBR and BRTA had imposed restrictions in imports of the king of the
road ‘taxi cab’ in 2009.

He said taxi cab import duty was 7.50 percent in 2009 which
was increased to 20 percent in 2009-10 fiscal. Currently some 11,000 taxi cab
has been plying in the streets.

He demanded the government for reducing duty from 20 percent
to 5 percent for importing taxi cab and side by side to initiate a reasonable
process for importing taxi cab.

NBR member Farid Uddin Ahmed said the government will chalk out a programme for resolving the complexities for importing taxi
cab. BRTA has been instructed to take measure in this regard.

Shahjalal Majumder,
President of the Bangladesh Association of International Recruiting Agencies
(BAIRA) at the meeting said BAIRA has been able to send 10 million people to
different countries across the world.

He proposed the government for constituting tax-free FC Pass
Fund separately for the BAIRA.

Zakir Hossain, General Secretary
of Bangladesh Supermarket Owners' Association said like other countries,
Bangladesh started super market business in 2000 with a huge prospect. Now the
sector is facing acute downturn due to imposition of 4 percent tax.

He demanded withdrawal of tax, initiating VAT package as per
size of the shop and withdrawal of 105 percent duty for importing of
machineries.

Farid Uddin
gave an assurance for considering the proposal.

Shah Alam Sarkar,
Secretary General of Bangladesh Security Services Companies Owners Association
demanded withdrawal of income tax, VAT and corporate tax from the private
securities companies till 2021.

NBR member Farid Uddin presided over the meeting while Al-Amin Pramanik, First Secretary, Budget Coordinator (Tax), Iqbal Hossain, First Secretary, Tax and Policy of NBR were
present at the meeting.