by Rejaul Karim Byron in The Daily Star, June 25, 2023
For the first time, no one took the opportunity to whiten black money to avail the government’s tax amnesty in the outgoing fiscal year.
The government offered the tax break so that the money laundered out of the country is brought back by people, a finance ministry official said yesterday.
Since independence, the government offered such tax amnesty on 21 occasions, and the opportunity was available throughout more than 40 fiscal years.
At least a few individuals had always utilised the opportunity, but this is the first time, no one had whitened black money, added the official, requesting anonymity.
Only about a couple of work days remain of this fiscal year, and it is highly unlikely that someone will suddenly appear now and try to bring back their laundered money, the official said.
If the tax break is not extended, the offer will automatically expire at the beginning of the new fiscal year, ministry sources said.
When the finance bill is placed in parliament today, there is little chance the amnesty will be extended, they added.
In June 2022, the finance minister proposed legalising movable and immovable assets abroad, acquired with undeclared income in Bangladesh, in exchange for a certain amount in taxes.
As the proposal received widespread criticism, only the option to bring back cash through the banking channel by paying a seven percent tax remained.
Besides this, the National Board of Revenue was tasked with confiscating undisclosed assets abroad and take various other measures against money launderers.
Ahsan H Mansur, executive director of the Policy Research Institute, said it was presumed that no one would take the amnesty offer. “Those who launder money are less likely to have an intention to bring the money back home.”
The amnesty offer was aimed at giving opportunities to some powerful individuals to whiten the money they had laundered, he told The Daily Star.
A finance ministry official said the government made the move to boost revenue and mobilise foreign currencies at a time when Bangladesh’s foreign currency reserves were under pressure.
Since independence, Tk 45,522.83 crore have been whitened under the government’s tax amnesty, generating Tk 4,641.34 crore in taxes. https://www.thedailystar.net/news/bangladesh/news/fiscal-2022-23-govts-tax-amnesty-offer-draws-blank-3354696
