NBR chairman says extension of return deadline depends on government

The current deadline for return submission expires on Dec 31

The National Board of Revenue Chairman Abdur Rahman Khan has said the government will decide whether the deadline for income tax return submission for individual taxpayers will be extended.

He made these remarks on Sunday at the inauguration of a return submission assistance booth for members of the Dhaka Reporters’ Unity (DRU).

“Once we see that a large portion of those who have registered have submitted their returns, we will know that a substantial part of the process is complete,” he said, adding that they believe a large number of returns -- around 1.5 million taxpayers -- will be submitted online.

“If necessary, we may consider an extension later… perhaps the government will consider that. We will finalise it after discussion with the finance advisor,” he said.

He made the comment after receiving requests for extending the return submission deadline from guests attending the event.

Over 2.6 million out of 4.2 million registered taxpayers have submitted returns, he said, adding that it was unlikely the submission of the rest of returns would complete in a week before the current deadline expires.

An average of more than 15,000 new people are registering every day for return submission, he said.

The NBR extended the deadline for individual taxpayers to submit their income tax returns by one month at the end of November. The new deadline expired on Dec 31.

Taxpayers can now file returns online without uploading any documents. By paying income tax through any banking channel or mobile financial service, they immediately receive an automatic e-return acknowledgment.

The NBR chairman said measures are being introduced to save taxpayers the hassle of collecting documents from multiple offices.