Transcom chief Shahnaz Rahman among top taxpayers again

Once again, Transcom Group Chairman Shahnaz Rahman has been named one of the 76 highest taxpayers in the country.

Shahnaz has become one of the top taxpayers in the female category in the assessment year 2022-23. She was honoured as one of the highest taxpayers in the previous assessment year too.

The Daily Star Editor Mahfuz Anam and Prothom Alo Editor Matiur Rahman have been named among the top taxpayers in the journalist category for the eighth year in a row, according to a notification issued by the National Board of Revenue yesterday.

The tax administration also named Faridur Reza Sagar, managing director of Impress Telefilm (Channel i), Shykh Seraj, founder director and head of news at Channel i, and Mohammad Abdul Malek, editor of Dainik Azadi, among the highest taxpayers in the journalist category.

Mediastar, the parent company of the Prothom Alo, was the top taxpayer in the print and electronic media category. Mediastar is a sister concern of Transcom Group. Mediastar has been named among the top taxpayers for the eighth consecutive year,

In the print and electronic media category, East West Media Group Ltd, Somoy Media Ltd and Times Media Ltd were also among the top taxpayers.

In the female taxpayer category, Anwara Hossain, Nilufer Ferdous, Mituli Mahbub and Shaila Afrin Khandkar have been named among the other highest taxpayers in the assessment year 2022-23.

"We expect to recognise the highest taxpayers with tax cards at a ceremony this month," said a senior official of the NBR, which has been naming compliant taxpayers since FY2015-16 in an effort to encourage compliance in Bangladesh where evasion is believed to be rampant.

Bangladesh has roughly 94 lakh registered taxpayers but just over one-third filed returns on their incomes in the assessment year 2022-23.

Tax officials said the number of taxpayers should be higher in the view of the rising income and economic growth.

The tax authority launched the tax cards to honour compliant taxpayers in 2010-11. It started with recognising 10 taxpayers each in individual and company categories. The NBR later revised the criteria as many honest taxpayers were left out.

Among individuals, the NBR now recognises compliant taxpayers in 18 categories, including senior citizens, businesspersons, young taxpayers, salaried persons, sportsmen, actors, singers, doctors, architects, engineers, lawyers and accountants.

Among companies, the revenue collector has been recognising 54 firms under 15 categories that also include banks, non-bank financial institutions, telecommunication firms, food and allied, garment and textile, energy, and pharmaceuticals.

In 2017, the NBR honoured the family of Latifur Rahman, the founder and former chairman of Transcom Group, as "Kar Bahadur" or tax icon family along with 83 other families from across the country.