VAT payment through mobile banking begins next month

The National Board of Revenue (NBR) is going to introduce mobile banking services from the next month to make the VAT payment system more smooth and popular.

Once it is introduced, any business firm would be able to make VAT payment with ease and comfort through using mobile financial services like bkash, Rocket, and Nagad.

Earlier on July 16, the Revenue Board introduced e-payment system for paying VAT through online directly from the bank accounts under the VAT Online Project. With this, the business establishments are now paying VAT through online alongside submitting their VAT returns.

NBR officials said if the mobile banking services are added to the VAT payment system, the businesses would feel more encouraged to use the e-payment system for paying VAT.

VAT Online Project Director Kazi Mostafizur Rahman said small business houses will be able to deposit VAT to the state coffer with ease through mobile banking services.

He informed that from the next month, six mobile financial services or MFS like bkash, Rocket, Nagad, SureCash and Upay would be added to the e-payment system.

Mostafizur informed since there is a certain limit of transaction in the mobile banking services, the taxpayers initially would only be able to make their VAT payments as because to pay supplementary duty or turnover tax, the VAT payers need to have e-invoice.

Meanwhile, 15 more banks will be added to the e-payment system of VAT from the next month alongside the existing three banks namely HSBC, Prime Bank and Midland Bank.

These 15 new banks include Eastern Bank Ltd, Dutch Bangla Bank, Citi Bank NA, Dhaka Bank, Pubali Bank, Mutual Trust Bank, Standard Chartered Bank, Sonali Bank, Rupali Bank, Shahjalal Islami Bank, One Bank, and United Commercial Bank Limited (UCBL).

Since last July, the number of VAT registered business establishments through online reached 1,74,802.