NBR once again extends deadline for VAT software use
The National Board of Revenue has extended the deadline for the third time for use of software for record-keeping by firms with turnover of Tk 5 crore and above in the face of resistance to installing the costly software.
The new deadline is February 29.
The tax authority is now trying to bring down the price of the software by asking more companies to develop it, said an NBR official requesting anonymity as he is not authorised to speak with the media.
At present, 24 companies are authorised to make the software, which will connect businesses with a server at the revenue authority’s premises. The companies are demanding Tk 10-15 lakh for the software.
“This software should not be compared with the ordinary ones. It is a system developed in line with the law. It is a sophisticated task and we have to do it carefully,” said Md Mahadi Hasan, head of operation of Dhrupadi Techno Consortium Ltd, one of the NBR enlisted software firms.
The company has already developed 70 such software out of 110 orders it received from local companies so far.
He, however, said a trading company with a turnover of Tk 5 crore and above might get an NBR prescribed software in between Tk 2-4 lakh.
Prices become higher when it comes to large manufacturing firms, he added.
The call for software use came in September 2018 as part of the NBR’s initiative to automate the value-added tax system, the biggest source of revenue for the state.
The rule was introduced to ensure that the actual amount of VAT comes to the NBR without any evasion.
Businesses will not have to visit VAT office with lots of papers in hand, which will reduce the cost of compliance, the NBR official said.
The NBR also directed its field offices to furnish a list of firms with yearly sales of Tk 5 crore and above, the number of businesses that are already using the software and the number of applications under consideration.
Officials said the NBR has decided to strengthen monitoring to ensure more compliance with its directive.
The original deadline for using software was January last year, which was moved to December 31. The last deadline was February 2.
