Tmac
December 16th, 2007, 07:53 PM
Electronic cash registers to be made mandatory
The use of electronic cash registers at small and medium retail businesses is being made mandatory by the government to ensure collection of value added tax (VAT) from the retailers.
The National Board of Revenue (NBR) will start implementing this new policy in July next year when restaurants, sweetmeat stores, fast food outlets, grocery stores, beauty salons, furniture shops, community centres, department and general stores will have to use electronic cash registers for everyday transactions.
The decision was taken in a bid to ensure that small and medium enterprises collect VAT properly from their customers and deposit it to the exchequer. The present manual system of accounting used at the retail outlets leaves room for tax evasion by deceiving VAT inspectors and this new scheme would eliminate that scope, believe the authorities.
"All small and medium retail businesses, many of which have been evading tax by taking advantage of the current manual accounting system, will come under this new scheme," said an NBR official.
Eventually, the policy would be enforced at all commercial businesses, sources said adding that non-compliance of the policy would result in shutting down of the retail outlet under the section 37 of the VAT act.
To ensure strict enforcement of the policy, new trade licences would be issued for businesses that already use electronic cash registers, said sources adding that the existing trade licences would not be renewed unless the applicants start using electronic cash registers.
The NBR has already asked Dhaka City Corporation (DCC) to inform all its trade licence holders that the DCC would not renew their trade licences unless they purchase and start using electronic cash registers by July 1, 2008, sources at NBR said.
Regarding the difficulties encountered by VAT officials under the present manual bookkeeping system at retail stores, a VAT official at Policies Department of NBR said, "A lot of shop owners deceive the VAT officers by maintaining different books [in secret]."
"When the VAT inspectors go to the businesses for verifying VAT collection and payment information, they are presented with a register book that contains a small number of sales records. The businesses swindle the government out of a huge amount of tax this way," he said.
Retailers however denied the allegation. "We have to use different types of books to record different types of transactions. So, it's not always possible to locate and present every single book whenever the VAT inspectors demand," said Abul Hashem, a grocery store owner from Badda.
"It sounds like a good idea to make the use of cash registers mandatory. However, they should keep in mind that a good number of people may not be able to afford electronic cash registers," he observed.
Abul Hasnat, a restaurant owner at Uttara, echoed Hashem, saying, "A decent cash register comes at a price of around Tk 40,000 to Tk 50,000. We have to cough up at least around Tk 20,000 for even an inferior quality cash register. So, they [the authorities] should keep in mind that there are a huge number of small businesses that are owned by the less affluent section of the society."
"Not everyone may afford that kind of an expense. Small retail outlets should not be subjected to this mandatory requirement," he suggested.
However, the NBR officials believe that the retailers have more than enough time to purchase their cash registers. "They have a good six to seven months before the policy is enforced. I do not see why they can't spend Tk 20,000 [on a register]. It sounds reasonable in terms of the money they make," said an NBR official.
"Also, the fact that there is no import duty or VAT on electronic cash registers, would make things easier for them [retailers], he said.
Majority of the retailers in the city, in the meantime, are found absolutely in the dark about this new scheme. Most of them do not even have the slightest clue what electronic cash registers are, how to operate them or where to buy them.
"Could you give me any idea where to get a cash register or which one would be more cost-effective?" asked a perplexed Shankar Chandra Dash, a stationary store owner at Banani, after this correspondent informed him of the new NBR policy.
"I think it would be more convenient to use the electronic cash register rather than recording sales on the manual bookkeeping system. However, I really do not know about the functions of a cash register or where to get one," added Shankar.
According to NBR officials, a mass public awareness campaign on this new NBR policy would soon be launched with the help of both print and electronic media. A series of dialogues between VAT officials and retailers would also be arranged to discuss on the new mandatory policy of using electronic cash registers, the NBR officials added.
http://www.thedailystar.net/story.php?nid=15744
The use of electronic cash registers at small and medium retail businesses is being made mandatory by the government to ensure collection of value added tax (VAT) from the retailers.
The National Board of Revenue (NBR) will start implementing this new policy in July next year when restaurants, sweetmeat stores, fast food outlets, grocery stores, beauty salons, furniture shops, community centres, department and general stores will have to use electronic cash registers for everyday transactions.
The decision was taken in a bid to ensure that small and medium enterprises collect VAT properly from their customers and deposit it to the exchequer. The present manual system of accounting used at the retail outlets leaves room for tax evasion by deceiving VAT inspectors and this new scheme would eliminate that scope, believe the authorities.
"All small and medium retail businesses, many of which have been evading tax by taking advantage of the current manual accounting system, will come under this new scheme," said an NBR official.
Eventually, the policy would be enforced at all commercial businesses, sources said adding that non-compliance of the policy would result in shutting down of the retail outlet under the section 37 of the VAT act.
To ensure strict enforcement of the policy, new trade licences would be issued for businesses that already use electronic cash registers, said sources adding that the existing trade licences would not be renewed unless the applicants start using electronic cash registers.
The NBR has already asked Dhaka City Corporation (DCC) to inform all its trade licence holders that the DCC would not renew their trade licences unless they purchase and start using electronic cash registers by July 1, 2008, sources at NBR said.
Regarding the difficulties encountered by VAT officials under the present manual bookkeeping system at retail stores, a VAT official at Policies Department of NBR said, "A lot of shop owners deceive the VAT officers by maintaining different books [in secret]."
"When the VAT inspectors go to the businesses for verifying VAT collection and payment information, they are presented with a register book that contains a small number of sales records. The businesses swindle the government out of a huge amount of tax this way," he said.
Retailers however denied the allegation. "We have to use different types of books to record different types of transactions. So, it's not always possible to locate and present every single book whenever the VAT inspectors demand," said Abul Hashem, a grocery store owner from Badda.
"It sounds like a good idea to make the use of cash registers mandatory. However, they should keep in mind that a good number of people may not be able to afford electronic cash registers," he observed.
Abul Hasnat, a restaurant owner at Uttara, echoed Hashem, saying, "A decent cash register comes at a price of around Tk 40,000 to Tk 50,000. We have to cough up at least around Tk 20,000 for even an inferior quality cash register. So, they [the authorities] should keep in mind that there are a huge number of small businesses that are owned by the less affluent section of the society."
"Not everyone may afford that kind of an expense. Small retail outlets should not be subjected to this mandatory requirement," he suggested.
However, the NBR officials believe that the retailers have more than enough time to purchase their cash registers. "They have a good six to seven months before the policy is enforced. I do not see why they can't spend Tk 20,000 [on a register]. It sounds reasonable in terms of the money they make," said an NBR official.
"Also, the fact that there is no import duty or VAT on electronic cash registers, would make things easier for them [retailers], he said.
Majority of the retailers in the city, in the meantime, are found absolutely in the dark about this new scheme. Most of them do not even have the slightest clue what electronic cash registers are, how to operate them or where to buy them.
"Could you give me any idea where to get a cash register or which one would be more cost-effective?" asked a perplexed Shankar Chandra Dash, a stationary store owner at Banani, after this correspondent informed him of the new NBR policy.
"I think it would be more convenient to use the electronic cash register rather than recording sales on the manual bookkeeping system. However, I really do not know about the functions of a cash register or where to get one," added Shankar.
According to NBR officials, a mass public awareness campaign on this new NBR policy would soon be launched with the help of both print and electronic media. A series of dialogues between VAT officials and retailers would also be arranged to discuss on the new mandatory policy of using electronic cash registers, the NBR officials added.
http://www.thedailystar.net/story.php?nid=15744