Tax fair raked in a total of Tk 1,417 crore in taxes in the first five days, as visitors flocked to the venue over the weekend to complete their tax-related tasks, according to the National Board of Revenue.

The five-day collection is 6 percent higher than last year's, the tax authority said in a press release yesterday.

The annual show, whose popularity has been steadily rising since its introduction in 2010, has been taking place at the under-construction headquarters of the NBR at Agargaon in Dhaka and other divisional cities since November 1.

The tax authority also organised the show for four days in district towns, for two days in 29 upazilas and for one day in 57 upazilas through mobile trucks.

Yesterday, the NBR held the show in 48 districts, including Dhaka and 14 upazilas, which altogether had a foot count of 1.55 lakh, said the NBR.

"It was really a very good experience. Everyone there was in the mood to help, which I did not get when I had visited the tax office," said Md Saiful Islam, who visited the tax fair for the first time on November 4.

Islam submitted his return and also collected his user ID and password for accessing the online tax return filing system, which was launched last week.

"People will be interested to comply with the rules if better services are continued at the fair," he said.

The fair in other divisional cities and district towns also received a sizeable crowd of taxpayers.

For example, at the fair in Sylhet, the tax authority logged in Tk 23.61 crore since the beginning of the event, according to our Sylhet correspondent. The field office there targeted to collect Tk 20 crore from the event.

Mukir Hossain, director of Sylhet Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said the income tax fair also creates a festive mood among taxpayers.

He demanded that the duration of the fair be extended to 15 days for the convenience of taxpayers.

The event, where taxpayers can complete tax-related formalities from 10am to 5pm, will end tomorrow.

So far this year, 6.38 lakh taxpayers received services at the tax fair, up 19 percent year-on-year. The submission of tax returns soared 23 percent year-on-year to 1.21 lakh.

The opening of Taxpayers Identification Number also shot up: 27,222 TINs were opened in the first five days, up 145 percent year-on-year.

To help the taxpayers file and submit tax return online, the NBR launched the e-filing system last week and started issuing access ID to taxpayers who visited the fair with a copy of Taxpayer's Identification Number and National ID. 

So far, 2,578 taxpayers collected user IDs and passwords for access to the e-filing system from the fair.

The tax collector, as part its goal to create awareness and develop a tax culture, also organised a quiz among students who visited the fair.