Garment manufacturers and exporters on Monday demanded that the National Board of Revenue should reduce the tax at source for export-oriented industries in the upcoming national budget to 0.50 per cent from the existing 0.80 per cent considering global recession and political instability in the country.
At a pre-budget discussion with the NBR, leading associations of exporters also demanded extension of bond licence auditing interval from two years which is now done every year and increase of time for submission of audit documents to six months from the existing three months.
As a part of revenue budget preparation for the fiscal year of 2013-2014, the NBR discussed with exporters under bonded warehouse facility, paper, printing, publishing, cinema and advertising sector on the day at its conference room with NBR chairman Ghulam Hussain in the chair.
At the meeting, Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association president Atiqul Islam said that apparel exporters got only 20-25 per cent price from any export as they had to spend around 75-80 per cent of export price for buying raw materials through back-to-back LCs (letters of credit).
‘So tax at source at the rate of 0.80 per cent on export price is not rational. Tax at source for apparel exporters should be on manufacturing price or it should be reduced to 0.50 per cent in the upcoming budget,’ he said.
He said that overall global demand for apparel items had declined in the major markets due to global recession and political unrest in the country.
The BGMEA also recommended establishing industrial park for garments industries, allowing duty free import of pre-fabricated building materials for factory and financial assistance for new plants unable to start production due to not getting of gas connection.
The Bangladesh Exporters Association, Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association, Bangladesh Plastic Goods Manufacturers and Exporters Association, Bangladesh Terry Towel and Linen Manufacturers and Exporters Association, and Bangladesh Garment Accessories and Packaging Manufacturers and Exporters Association also wanted the NBR to reduce tax at source on export to 0.50 per cent or impose the tax on actual value addition in export.
The BKMEA also recommended to increase the rate of cash incentive to 10 per cent from 5 per cent, provide tax waiver on such incentives and increase renewal period of customs bond to three years from two years.
The association also sought the facility of duty free import of furnace oil and diesel generator to ensure smooth run of factories as many knitwear makers use furnace oil in their factories because of gas crisis.
The BGAPMEA and the BPGMEA demanded that the
NBR should immediately transfer to their associations the authority of issuing the utilisation permission certificates required in exporting the products manufactured using the raw materials and accessories imported under duty-free facilities.
The two associations have been demanding such authority for long.
At the same meeting, the Advertising Agencies Association of Bangladesh demanded an end to double taxation on bills on advertising broadcast in Bangladesh
Television and Bangladesh Betar, reduction of tax at source to 5 per cent from 10 per cent, reduction of tax on television programme to 3 per cent from 10 per cent.
Bangladesh Gyan O Srijonshil Prokashok Samity wanted tax waiver on export of Bangladeshi books and tax exemption on donations for setting up library.
The Bangladesh Motion Picture Exhibitors Association demanded tax waiver on sales of ticket in cinema halls.
BEA president Abdus Salam Murshedy, BKMEA vice-president Mohammad Hatem, BPGMEA president Jashim Uddin, BGAPMEA president Rafez Alam Chowdhury, among others, spoke at the meeting.
-With New Age input
