The additional tariffs on technological products like laptop, printer, toner, cartridges and others proposed in the national budget will make these products costlier. Such move will also be a major barrier in building ‘smart Bangladesh’.
If the proposed budget for 2022-23 is passed, the price of laptops will increase by 31.25 percent, printers, toners and cartridges by 15 percent and the price of internet by 10 percent, leaders of IT sector said at a press briefing on Tuesday.
Bangladesh Computer Society (BCS), Bangladesh Association of Software and Information Services (BASIS), Internet Service Providers Association of Bangladesh (ISPAB), Bangladesh Association of Contact Centers and Outsourcing (BACCO) and E-Commerce Association of Bangladesh (E-CAB) jointly organised the press briefing at the National Press Club.
The leaders of the organizations commented that the progress of Smart Bangladesh announced by the Prime Minister will come to a halt if the prices of such digital products and internet go up. They urged the government to withdraw the proposed tariffs and taxes on laptops, printers, toners and cartridges and the internet.
At the press conference, BASIS vice-president Abu Dawood Khan said the proposed budget had unexpectedly imposed VAT and tax on internet, laptops and printers which would have a negative impact on the development of the technology sector.
BASIS's demands were not reflected in the budget, he mentioned. Additional tariffs on laptop imports will fail to meet the demand of laptops for ordinary users unless the local technology product production capacity is able to meet the demand. Tax exemption facility will have to be given till 2030 by withdrawing additional duty on technology products. ISPAB President Mohammad Imdadul Haque said that in the proposed budget of 2022-23, 10 percent advance tax has been imposed on broadband service providers. In addition, a supplementary duty of 10 percent has been imposed on the import of optical fiber cable. This will increase the cost of internet connection.
As a result, the internet cost of the customers will also increase. The cable that is made in the country is not up to the standard. "We demand that ISPs be included in the ITS sector. Besides, 10 percent advance tax on internet service providers and import tax on optical fiber cable should also be withdrawn," he added.
BACCO President Wahid Sharif said the proposed tax and tariffs on laptops and printers would also affect the business process outsourcing (BPO) sector. The imposition of VAT will increase the cost. Many organizations will not want to do outsourcing work. Besides, it will be difficult for freelancers to buy laptops. To solve the problem, 15 percent VAT on laptops and printers will have to be withdrawn.
E-Cab President Shami Kaiser said, "We thank the government for taking the initiative to encourage new entrepreneurs in the budget. Entrepreneurs will be able to afford the increase in the price of laptops, computers and the Internet to provide services. At present the e-commerce sector in the country is moving forward.”
She said, “Entrepreneurs will not be able to achieve their desired goals if 15 percent tax is imposed on laptops, computers and 10 percent tax on internet at this time. We want to move forward with young entrepreneurs. To make this journey easier, tariffs and taxes imposed on technology products should be withdrawn."
BCS President Engineer Subrata Sarkar said, "The imposition of taxes and duties on laptops, printers and internet will be questionable if the path we are treading to implement Smart Bangladesh announced by the Prime Minister is implemented. In order to implement Vision 2041, additional 15 percent value added tax on laptop imports will have to be withdrawn.”
He also said that laptops are no longer a luxury product. Laptops are one of the main tools used by freelancers to reach the government's USD 5 billion revenue target. Laptops are also recognized as educational materials. Therefore, imposing additional duties and taxes on laptops is in conflict with the progress of Digital Bangladesh."
He added that the BCS welcomes any move by the government to encourage domestic production. But the technology product on which we are going to impose value added tax, the country's laptop demand can be met by producing that product! We also need to have a clear idea about that. Five to six technology companies around the world produce laptops and printers. Besides, no printer manufacturing center has been established in Bangladesh yet.
The technology factory for laptop production in Bangladesh is not yet self-sufficient. Although only half of the companies start production on a small scale, it is insufficient compared to the demand. Only external components are being added here. In this context, imposing additional taxes on imports to encourage local production would actually put more pressure on consumers than to help local production.
