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DHAKA: Failure to file an income tax return within the stipulated deadline could lead to disconnection of essential services such as gas, electricity, water and internet, besides exposing taxpayers to fines, additional tax liabilities and other complications.
According to the National Board of Revenue (NBR), taxpayers can file their income tax returns for the current 2025-26 tax year until January 31.
NBR sources said tax officials have been empowered under the Income Tax Act to take such measures against taxpayers who fail to comply with the law. Failure to submit a return could also create complications in receiving salaries and allowances.
Section 266 of the Income Tax Act provides for a penalty of 10 percent of a taxpayer’s last assessed income for failure to file a return without reasonable cause. However, the penalty cannot be less than Tk 1,000.
If the failure continues, the deputy commissioner of taxes concerned may impose an additional penalty of Tk 50 for each day of continued default.
There are, however, separate limits depending on the taxpayer’s circumstances. For a taxpayer who has never previously been assessed for tax, the maximum penalty is Tk 5,000.
For a taxpayer who has previously been assessed, the penalty will be whichever is higher between 50 percent of the tax payable on the last assessed income and Tk 1,000.
Under Section 174 of the Income Tax Act, failure to file a return may also reduce the amount of tax exemptions available against certain investments. In addition to penalties, taxpayers may face an additional tax liability of 2 percent per month.
Online submission of income tax returns has been made mandatory in the current tax year. The requirement, however, has been relaxed for people aged 65 or above, physically incapacitated or persons with special needs, Bangladeshis living abroad and legal representatives filing returns on behalf of deceased taxpayers.
The requirement also does not apply to foreign nationals working in Bangladesh, although they may file their returns electronically if they wish.
The NBR has also made return filing mandatory for certain categories of taxpayers regardless of their income. Based on profession and activities, return filing is compulsory for holders of Taxpayer Identification Numbers (TINs) in 45 categories.
According to NBR data, around 3.1 million taxpayers have filed returns so far in the current tax year, against more than 11.5 million registered TIN holders in the country.
Return filing has also been made mandatory for people hiring community centres, convention halls or similar establishments located within city corporation areas for social and corporate events, workshops, seminars, symposiums, training programmes and other functions.
As a result, failure to file a return within the stipulated period could create complications even for those planning weddings or other social events, if they need to hire such venues or services.