NBR registers 131,000 new VAT payers in December

The National Board of Revenue (NBR) registered about 131,000 new Value Added Tax (VAT) entities nationwide in December under a special VAT registration drive. As part of the initiative, the NBR observed VAT Day on December 10 and VAT Week from December 10 to 15, 2025, with the theme “Register on Time, Pay VAT Correctly.” The campaign aimed to bring 100,000 previously unregistered businesses under the VAT net between December 10 and December 31, 2025.

Through sustained awareness campaigns and daily field-level surveys—including during holidays—the country’s 12 VAT commissionerates surpassed the target, registering 131,000 new VAT payers in December 2025.

Before the interim government took office, the total number of VAT-registered entities stood at 516,000. With the latest additions, the number has now increased to 775,000, according to an NBR press release cited by BSS.

The release noted that VAT remains the single largest source of government revenue compared to customs duty and income tax. In the previous fiscal year, VAT accounted for around 38 per cent of total revenue, indicating substantial scope for further revenue growth through expansion of the VAT base.

To widen VAT coverage, the government has amended the VAT law, making VAT registration mandatory for businesses with annual turnover exceeding Tk 50 lakh, down from the previous threshold of Tk 3 crore.

The NBR has also introduced several measures to ease VAT compliance, including online VAT registration, electronic submission of VAT payments to the government treasury, e-filing of VAT returns through the eVAT system, and automated refunds of excess VAT directly to taxpayers’ bank accounts. Simplified VAT return formats have also been introduced for small businesses.

The NBR urged continued cooperation from consumers, traders, industrialists and the media to help implement an efficient, fully online VAT system aimed at building a self-reliant and prosperous Bangladesh.