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International Business Forum of Bangladesh (IBFB) has criticised the compulsory tax of Tk 2,000 from TIN (tax identification number) holders as proposed in the budget.
The forum thinks that administrative complexity and fraud cases will rise as a result of the minimal tax collection system, and the ultimate result will not be achieved.
The IBFB also proposed the formation of the Income Tax Act as a national law based on feedback from the consumers, the law ministry, and other stakeholders concerned.
IBFB President Humayun Rashid, who is also Managing Director and CEO of Energypack Power Generation Ltd., came up with these observations at a post-budget press conference titled ‘Proposed National Budget 2023–24: Expectations and Achievements’ in the city’s Jatiya Press Club.
"The main objective of this year's proposed budget is to control inflation and maintain higher GDP growth," the IBRB president noted, adding that in this context, a budget proposal of Tk 7,61,785 crore has been proposed for the financial year 2023–24, where the expected GDP growth rate is 7.5 percent and the inflation rate is 6.0 percent.
"Mobile phone users will have to pay higher bills as the new budget for the fiscal year 2023–24 proposed an increase in the supplementary duty from the existing 10 percent to 15 percent when the country and economy are growingly getting digital," he said.
The IBFB also said, "The health and education sectors were not taken seriously in the budget, and the social safety net was somewhat widened.”
He suggested focusing on the creation of skilled manpower in agriculture, the health sector, IT, and skilled manpower development.
"There is no other option without encouraging industrialization in the country to create employment and bring low-cost goods to the masses," observed the IBRB president.
He welcomed the proposal to reduce customs duties on raw materials required by certain industries and the announcement to introduce a universal pension scheme.
He proposed to raise foreign exchange reserves, extend policy support towards industry, contribute to economic growth through job creation, expand markets in related industries, support clean-energy technologies, reduce per capita liability, and take economic projects focused on climate vulnerability, etc.
Among others, IBFB Finance Committee Chairman Md. Abdul Majid, former IBFB President Hafizur Rahman Khan, Vice President MA Siddiqui, and others were also present.
