National Board of Revenue (NBR) Chairman Md Abdur Rahman Khan announced today that the NBR is building an automated system to integrate taxpayers’ annual return submissions with bank databases—eliminating the need to collect separate bank certificates from multiple branches.
Speaking at a Meet the Press event ahead of VAT Day and VAT Week, he said the system will automatically retrieve key information—such as June 30 account balances, annual profit earned, tax deducted at source, and bank charges—once taxpayers enter their TIN and NID during return filing.
Currently, taxpayers with several bank accounts must visit each bank individually, often leading to errors and delays. “Automation will end this hassle and prevent inconsistencies in submitted figures,” Rahman said.
He stressed that widespread misconceptions have fueled concerns, clarifying that no NBR official will have access to taxpayers’ personal or transactional bank data. Only taxpayers themselves will see the automatically generated information while filing returns.
He added that no transaction-level data will be collected through the system. Any request for detailed transactions will continue under existing legal procedures during investigations based on credible intelligence.
Rahman said the system will reduce complications such as reopening files due to bank-related discrepancies. While the mechanism could not be launched this year, he expressed optimism it will be operational before next year, as the NBR strengthens its internal IT capacity to securely connect with banking systems.
He called on the media to help counter misinformation and build public trust, noting that enhanced transparency and efficiency will naturally improve tax compliance.
The initiative, he said, reflects the NBR’s broader goal of simplifying return filing, easing the burden on taxpayers, and advancing toward a more modern, automated tax administration aligned with Bangladesh’s development priorities.
Source: BSS
Bd-pratidin English/ Jisan
