Prime Minister Tarique Rahman has proposed several changes to the budget to reduce the tax burden on the public, to withdraw the controversial provision on black money “whitening”, and to remove the obligation to obtain a TIN to open a bank account.
The prime minister also urged Finance Minister and Planning Minister Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury to reduce customs duties and taxes in several areas.
At the same time, he has expressed a firm commitment to “ending the fascist regime”, restoring order to the country's economic sector, and quickly bringing laundered money back from abroad.
The prime minister presented the changes to the finance minister during the parliamentary budget session on Monday,
The parliament session began in the morning with Speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmad in the chair. Leader of the Opposition Shafiqur Rahman delivered his speech on the budget, followed by Tarique.
“Normally, these demands come from the opposition party,” Tarique said. “But for now, I want to stand by them mentally, if not physically, and speak.
The budget proposed that the tax-free income limit for individual taxpayers be Tk 375,000 for 2026-27 and 2027-28, at Tk 400,000 for the tax years 2028-29 and 2029-30, and Tk 450,000 for the tax year 2030-31.
The prime minister urged that these be raised to Tk 400,000, Tk 450,000, and Tk 500,000, respectively.
Highlighting the “questions and concerns” from the public regarding a provision on the reporting of self-motivated investment in the proposed budget, Tarique said it was included to prevent the harassment of taxpayers whose land had not been registered at its actual value.
However, as many saw it as an opportunity to “whiten black money”, he urged the finance minister to drop the provision.
The prime minister also said the proposal to make TIN certificates mandatory for opening bank accounts, registering share certificates and transferring property has caused public “confusion” and recommended its withdrawal.
Tarique said, “The private universities in the country currently pay tax at a reduced rate of 10 per cent. I propose to further reduce the tax on private universities to 5 per cent.
“However, there is a proviso here. The proviso is that I will also appeal to them, especially the universities, that since the tax is being proposed… to establish and operate language labs for research and development and to develop students who are proficient in many languages, and at the same time to provide an opportunity for poor and talented students to study at their institutions free of cost.”
The proposal was met with thumps of approval from government and opposition MPs.
Tarique also advised expanding tax benefits for small ethnic groups, both in hill districts and other areas.
He said, “The budget had proposed to keep all income from economic activities, aside from salary and income earned from the finance sector, tax-free in the three hill districts of the country, particularly for small ethnic groups.
“I would like to draw the attention of the honourable minister of finance and planning to further increase this tax-free income benefit for the small ethnic groups in the hill districts and make their business, agricultural sector and other income, as well as salary income, tax-free. This will apply to the small ethnic groups in both the hills and plains.”
To expand and increase exports of the shrimp industry, the prime minister proposed withdrawing the duty and VAT imposed on the import of feed additives, probiotics, vitamins, minerals and necessary equipment.
In addition, he recommended reducing the duty on the import of various raw materials for the development of local industries. He said that the 10 per cent supplementary duty on the import of honey used in pharmaceuticals and industries should be withdrawn.
He also requested the finance minister to reduce or withdraw the proposed duty on raw materials of various industries, including PET resin, PVC, cold-rolled sheets, and oxide of roll products.
The prime minister also recommended the complete withdrawal of the 10 per cent regulatory duty on copper imports for electrical wires and the reduction of the proposed 15 per cent custom duty on the import of unprocessed cashew nuts as raw materials for industry to 5 per cent.
He recommended extending the concessional benefit on the import of raw materials for local LED lamp manufacturing companies and prefabricated building manufacturing companies until Jun 30, 2030.
Tarique said that many businessmen in Bangladesh currently advertise on various social media platforms, OTT platforms, search engines, online marketplaces and other online media. But since there is 15 per cent VAT in these cases, many businessmen pay through other informal means instead of paying for advertising through official channels.
“As a result, the person is not getting any benefit. At the same time, the government is also losing revenue. I would like to request the honourable finance minister to reduce the 15 per cent VAT on this to 5 per cent. We believe that this will encourage those who are making payments in other ways to make payments properly.”
He also asked for the tax and VAT rates of Tk 2,500 per Bhori for gold or gold ornaments or platinum, Tk 2,500 per gram for diamonds and Tk 100 per gram for silver ornaments to be re-evaluated.
In addition, he recommended the complete withdrawal of the 15 per cent VAT applicable to revenue sharing of telecom companies with BTRC, and complete exemption from 10 per cent VAT at the supplier level for all types of field supplies.
The prime minister also proposed reducing the 15 per cent VAT on local production of double-cabin pickups and microbuses to 5 per cent.
Afterwards, the Leader of the Opposition Shafiqur, drew the attention of the prime minister and asked him to advise the finance minister to withdraw the duty on bicycles.
Tarique agreed and asked the finance minister to examine the proposal.