NBR to Hand 30 Tax- free Cars to Govt

The country revenue board has aimed to provide 30 convince vehicles, which is imported by antecedent ministers and members of parliament (MPs) under the tax- free way. After two failed auction the government has taken this initiative .

The Chairman of  National Board of Revenue (NBR)  Md Abdur Rahman Khan declared  that 30 tax-free vehicles, prior to  imported by members of the former 12th parliament, At present,  It  will be hand to the government for official use. He expressed opinion   while talking  to journalists after a workshop at the Chittagong Port Auditorium. 

The luxury  vehicles had been imported  in under duty-free privileges by lawmakers mostly from the Awami League following the January 2024 elections. Moreover , the parliament was band  on August 6 after a student-led uprising toppled the fascist   regime. 

Many of the former MPs flew way from  the country without taking  their vehicles from Chattogram port. Among  the 42 cars imported, 24 were surge up  for auction in February. Bids ranged between Tk 0.1 million and Tk 31 million which is  far below the market value and the government’s reserve price of Tk 96.7 million per vehicle.

The minimum winning bid had been fixed at 60 percent of the reserve, or Tk 58 million, with an additional 25 percent tax, making the floor price about Tk 72.5 million. Customs officials had expected the auction to generate Tk 1.75 billion in revenue.

Among those who imported vehicles  are the  former MPs Muhammad Saiful Islam, Sanjida Khanam, Muhammad Shahjahan Omar, Sourendra Nath Chakraborty, Anupam Shahjahan Joy, Sajjadul Hasan, Md Saddam Hossain Pavel, Tarana Halim, Naser Shahriar Zahedi, Md Abul Kalam Azad, and ex-state minister for information Mohammad Ali Arafat.

The tax-free import privilege  for MPs was first introduced in 1988 during the HM Ershad government and has continued since then. Under the policy, each lawmaker may import one car during a five-year term.

Following the January 2024 polls, 51 MPs had opened letters of credit to bring in vehicles, though only six were cleared before the fall of the government. By law, cars left at port must be auctioned if not collected within 30 days of arrival, while the Chittagong Port Authority also imposes storage charges after a four-day grace period.