President of Dhaka Chamber of Commerce & Industry (DCCI) Taskeen Ahmed has urged individuals and businesses to submit their income tax and Value Added Tax (VAT) returns online (e-return) to overcome existing obstacles in filing.

He made the call while inaugurating a workshop titled “Personal Income Tax and E-Return” organised by DCCI in the capital on Saturday, said a press release.

The DCCI president said that every citizen and business must pay taxes as a moral obligation, since taxation is the main source of government revenue for implementing development projects, building infrastructure, and delivering education, healthcare, and social safety net services.

He stressed that income tax and VAT play a crucial role in strengthening the country’s economic foundation.

Taskeen noted that, compared with other countries, Bangladesh’s tax-to-GDP ratio is relatively low, and in order to improve the situation, the country must increase tax collection in line with GDP growth.

The DCCI president further stated that the government has been encouraging citizens to pay their taxes and has introduced the e-return system to remove existing obstacles in the process. This initiative, he added, will help ensure greater transparency and accountability in revenue administration. He emphasised that both individual taxpayers and businesses should adopt the e-return filing system.

The workshop featured three technical sessions on income tax, Value Added Tax (VAT), and e-return, conducted by Lutful Hadee, Proprietor & CEO of chartered accountancy firm Hadee Lutful & Co.

More than 70 participants from DCCI member firms attended the workshop and gained comprehensive knowledge on income tax, Value Added Tax (VAT), and e-return, which will help them run their business operations more smoothly.

DCCI Senior Vice President Razeev H Chowdhury and Vice President Salem Sulaiman were also present on the occasion.