Some eight sectors, including solar panel manufacturers and animal feed manufacturers, will enjoy exemptions from the payment of advance tax at the import stage. The advance tax is payable at the import stage and the importers are allowed to adjust or get refund of the paid taxes from the relevant VAT zones. Also, goods imported for personal consumption under the passenger baggage rules and motorised vehicles imported by parliament members under the duty-free benefits will also enjoy the same benefit. The National Board of Revenue has issued a regulatory order recently by waiving the tax for the sectors. In the current fiscal year’s budget, the value added tax wing under the NBR imposed the taxation at a rate of 5.0 per cent on most of the products to be imported. Officials said the NBR waived the taxes for those sectors as it found the importers are exempted from the payment of other taxes at the import stage. They said those importers will not be able to adjust the advance tax as they are enjoying exemption from the payment of all import taxes. Solar panel manufacturers will get the waiver from the payment of advance taxes on the import of machinery, spare parts and raw materials. Spinning mills will enjoy the exemption in respect of import of artificial staple fibre. It will resolve discrimination between the exporters without bond licences and those with bond licences. Officials said procuring raw materials becomes costlier for non-bonded exporters of the item due to the advance tax. Exporters who are enjoying bond facility are exempted from the payment of such taxes on the import of raw materials. Import of needle detector for the 100 per cent export-oriented readymade garment industry under bonded warehouse facility will be exempted. Weavers who are recommended by and registered with the Bangladesh Handloom Board will enjoy the exemption from the import of polyester yarn and metalised yarn. Members of the Jamdani Weavers Samity will also enjoy the benefit on import of polyester yarn and other metalised yarn. According to the order, poultry, livestock and dairy feed manufacturers, poultry or livestock enterprises, animal health company registered with the Department of Livestock Services, and fisheries and fish feed manufacturers registered with the Department of Fisheries will enjoy the waiver in case of the import of raw materials or feed production. Advance tax will also be exempted from the imports of ocean going ships with capacity of more than 5,000 dead weight tonnes.
Source – Financial Express.
