NBR chairman says allowing black money whitening unacceptable; vows crackdown on launderers

In his first press briefing as the newly-appointed chairman of the National Board of Revenue (NBR), Abdur Rahman Khan vowed to take strict action against those involved in tax evasion and money laundering. 

Emphasising that it wouldn't matter who the offenders were, he said, "The Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit is already working on identifying these criminals, and we will not sit idly by. We will address these issues strongly."

Speaking at the Revenue Building in the capital's Agargaon today (18 August), he termed the practice of legalising black money "unacceptable". 

"By allowing the whitening of black money, we are accepting corruption and demoralising honest taxpayers," he added. 

Abdur Rahman Khan also noted that the root cause of such large-scale irregularities was the lack of the rule of law. 

He stressed the importance of preventing the emergence of such offenders by maintaining vigilance.

During a meeting with senior officers, Khan instructed them to treat taxpayers with respect while making it clear that he would not tolerate any form of irregularities.

Despite substantial criticism from economists, trade bodies, and civil society organisations, the Finance Bill 2024 was passed in parliament retaining the scope for whitening undisclosed money by paying only a 15% tax for businesses and high-income individuals.

The move by the Hasina-led government was widely criticised.

Since independence, schemes to legalise undeclared money have been introduced at least 22 times. 

According to data from the National Board of Revenue (NBR), nearly Tk45,522 crore was whitened between 1972 and 2022.