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Traders will be able to pay value-added tax using debit and credit cards of 27 commercial banks as the National Board of Revenue is set to introduce VAT payment through the cards under the e-payment platform of the VAT Online Project.
The VOP will introduce the facility using the e-payment gateway of state-run Sonali Bank from October to popularise the online VAT payment system and expand the scope for businesses, officials said.
Currently, traders having bank accounts with HSBC, Prime Bank and Midland Bank can pay their VAT and supplementary duty online directly from their accounts.
The VOP will also include 15 more banks to expand the e-payment facility introduced in July 16, they said.
Gradually, all banks having online payment mechanism will come under the scheme.
VAT officials said that the introduction of VAT payment through debit and credit cards would make the payment process easier and simplified for traders.
It will also reduce cost and time for VAT payment, they said.
Under the system, an electronic copy of VAT challan, an alternative to manual challan, is generated for both traders and respective VAT office and the VAT authority accepts the e-challan as proof of VAT payment.
Earlier on October 2019, the VOP introduced online VAT returns submission system but failed to attract significant number of businesses to file returns online due to absence of e-payment facility.
In July 2020, more than 46,000 businesses, out of 1.80 lakh registered traders, submitted their VAT returns online.
Though the VOP introduced the e-payment facility in July, most of the traders still remained out of the coverage due to limited number of banks connected with the system.
Around half of the large taxpayers under the large taxpayers unit (VAT) of the NBR have been filing VAT returns manually due to various complexities, including lack of e-payment facility.
The revenue board is also planning to bring the mobile financial services, including bkash, Nagad and Rocket, under the system to popularise the e-payment system.Currently, income taxpayers can pay their tax through the MFS.
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