United News of Bangladesh

The National Board of Revenue (NBR) on Sunday (January 18, 2026) launched an automated system that allows income tax paid at the import stage to be directly credited to taxpayers’ electronic income tax returns, significantly easing long-standing compliance hassles for importers. The new facility has been introduced through the successful integration of the NBR’s e-return system with ASYCUDA World, the customs clearance platform. From now on, advance income tax paid during import will automatically appear as a credit in the concerned taxpayer’s e-return. Officials said the move has effectively ended years of difficulties faced by importers in adjusting import-stage income tax against their final tax liability. Read More: NBR sees growing use of e-returns by expatriate Bangladeshis At the same time, it has made the process of filing e-returns simpler and more efficient for importing businesses. Under the new system, when an importer enters business income details in the e-return for a particular assessment year, information related to advance income tax paid against each Bill of Entry during that year will be displayed automatically. The credited amount is then deducted from the total payable income tax, enabling the system to determine the final tax payable along with the return. The NBR noted that the initiative is part of its broader effort to digitise tax administration and improve taxpayer services through automation and system integration. The e-return system for the 2025–26 tax year was formally inaugurated on August 4, 2025 by Finance Adviser Dr Salehuddin Ahmed through the website www.etaxnbr.gov.bd. Read More: NBR links ASYCUDA World with BGMEA e-UD system to modernise bond management Since the launch, more than 4.6 million taxpayers have registered on the e-return platform, while around 3.3 million taxpayers have already submitted their income tax returns online. Notably, the NBR said, many individuals for whom e-return filing is not mandatory are also voluntarily submitting their returns through the online system, indicating growing acceptance of digital tax services. The scope of the system has also been expanded to include non-resident Bangladeshis. Expatriate taxpayers can now register and submit their income tax returns online. So far, nearly 4,000 expatriate Bangladeshis have filed their income tax returns for the 2025–26 tax year through the e-return system. According to the NBR, taxpayers are not required to upload any supporting documents or papers while filing returns online. The authority reiterated that its efforts are focused on enabling individual taxpayers to pay taxes and submit returns easily from home, without physical visits to tax offices. The NBR has urged all individual taxpayers to submit their income tax returns online through the e-return system by January 31, 2026. Read more: Mobile phone prices set to fall as NBR slashes import duty

Amid Ramadan, allegations have surfaced against certain traders for hoarding imported goods at Chittagong Port, allegedly to engineer an artificial crisis and inflate market prices. According to port officials, importers are using port yards as storage facilities by delaying goods release, creating an artificial crisis, while around 40,000 Full Container Load (FCL) containers remain in the port yard and off-docks. The Chittagong Port Authority recently announced that if these goods-laden containers are not cleared by March 9, a fourfold charge will be imposed. Coffee, cashew cultivation helping Bandarban farmers to line their pockets At present, they said, among the 40,089 containers located in various yards at Chittagong Port, 31,384 are FCL containers. These containers, carrying imported goods, were left in the port yard without clearance, leading to disruptions in the port’s normal operations, they said. Chaktai-Khatunganj Wholesalers Association General Secretary Ahsan Ullah Jahedi pointed to the limitations of Chittagong Port in handling goods clearance. He said that the increased volume of goods being moved during Ramadan has led to some delays and complications in the clearance process, causing the goods to pile up at the port. Not only at the port but also across 19 off-docks, imported FCL containers are piling up. Currently, these off-docks hold 8,700 imported and 8,300 export-bound containers. Bangladesh Inland Container Depots Association (BICDA) Secretary-General Ruhul Amin Sikder Biplob said, "Many importers are using Chittagong Port as a storage space, leaving their imported goods-laden containers there for 20 to 21 days. This is causing an accumulation of FCL containers at the port, leading to operational issues.” Dhaka’s shopping malls dazzle well ahead of Eid shopping frenzy “When importers attempt to clear their containers, they face container congestion and traffic jams, negatively impacting the port’s operations. Therefore, it is necessary to deliver the accumulated containers at Chittagong Port as soon as possible," he said. Chittagong Port Authority Secretary Mohammad Omar Faruk told UNB that importers can keep goods-laden containers at the port yard for up to four days without charge. After this period, a 20-foot container incurs a fine of $6, while a 40-foot container incurs a fine of $12. This penalty increased to $24 and $48 per container, respectively, after the allowed period, he added. He said in light of the current situation, the Chittagong Port Authority has issued special instructions to clear imported goods and containers by March 9. If these instructions are not followed, from March 10 onwards, a fourfold charge will be applied to each container. The port authority has already sent letters regarding this to BGMEA and other port user organisations. Clifton Group Managing Director M Mohiuddin Chowdhury, an importer of garment products, blamed the customs authority’s manpower shortage for delays in container clearance. “The time-consuming clearance process is causing financial losses for us,” he said. Dhaka-Chattogram Highway turns deadlier; 152 lives lost in one year If the increased penalties are enforced, importers will have to pay $48 per day for a 20-feet container and $96 per day for a 40-feet container, further escalating costs, he said.