The Jatiya Sangsad yesterday passed the Finance Bill 2022 with some changes, including in the offshore tax amnesty, and thus paving the way for passing of the national budget for FY23 today.
Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal moved the bill in the Jatiya Sangsad this evening in presence of Leader of the House and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and it was later passed by voice vote.
In his winding up speech, the finance minister said that Bangladesh grabbed the first position in the world gaining 188 percent growth from 2009 to 2019 leaving China in the 2nd slot with a growth of 177 percent.
Citing an estimation of the Asian Development Bank, Kamal said that the GDP growth rate of Bangladesh would be the 2nd highest in Asia in the outgoing fiscal (FY22) year and also in the next fiscal year (FY23).
He also expressed gratitude towards Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina for her strong dynamic leadership.
Among the accepted 17 amendment proposals in the Finance Bill 2022, the government kept one of three offshore amnesty tax facilities, allowing disclosure of only repatriated assets for a 7 percent tax while removing any option of keeping wealth abroad by paying penalties.
Meanwhile, two provisions of the much-discussed offshore tax amnesty facility were not accepted.
The provision of penalty for individuals who conceal information about offshore assets in the Amended Finance Bill-22 was passed in Parliament.
