The Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) has urged the revenue authority to extend the deadline for income tax return submission for individual taxpayers until December 31 this year.

The apex trade body sent a letter to the National Board of Revenue (NBR) to this end, stating many taxpayers could not take preparations to file tax returns in line with the Income Tax Act-2023.

The official deadline for the filing of income, expenditure and wealth statements without penalty is November 30.

"We have received requests from various chambers regarding an extension of the tax return submission deadline. I think it would be convenient for taxpayers if they had more time to prepare to file returns ahead of the national election," said FBCCI President Mahbubul Alam.

The FBCCI said it would not be possible for many taxpayers to submit returns by the November 30 deadline due to the prevailing political situation and upcoming elections.

The Chittagong Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI) urged for an extension of the deadline to January 31 in a letter to the NBR.

It said that the Income Tax Circular 2023-24 was published late and there was a lack of awareness among taxpayers about the new law, passed in June this year.

A senior official of the NBR said no decision had been taken yet. "We will examine whether it is really necessary," he said.

The NBR extended the deadline for income tax return submissions till December 31 last year.

Bangladesh has 94 lakh registered taxpayers. However, the number of return filers remains low. Nearly 36 lakh taxpayers filed their income and expenditure statement in the year 2022-23, up 38 percent year-on-year from 25.9 lakh, NBR data showed.