The National Board of Revenue (NBR), with an aim to streamline the automated Value-added Tax regime, has decided to engage more software firms to implement the use of Electronic Fiscal Devise (EFD) within a very short period. The revenue board, earlier, appointed 11 firms to purchase or develop this device that will be provided to the businesses companies. But the board now has decided to engage more other companies to implement the project within shortest possible time.
The NBR, on June 13 last, issued a Statutory Regulatory Order (SRO) asking 25 types of business sales points to mandatorily use this device from the current fiscal year to keep the transactions and VAT collection records accurately. According to the SRO, any business entity having an annual turnover more than Tk 50,00000 must set up EFD software at their outlets.
NBR sources said it earlier thought to initially provide EFD 10,000 devices by August, this fiscal and extend it to 90,000 benchmark throughout the fiscal.
As part of the move, the VAT Online Project (VOP) of NBR appointed 11 software firms to implement the project. However, the revenue board now is thinking to appoint more other firms to implement the project at a quicker step as there have about 8-10 lakhs of shops or service centers having annual turnover more than Tk 50,00000, eligible for using EFD device.
NBR Chairman Mosharraf Hossain Bhuiyan on Saturday at a programme said that they would appoint about 1000 software firms to streamline the EFD project. He also on that day said that the board, in connection with this, would issue a circular within two or three days next. The companies will be allowed to develop software and carry out its maintenance. The each software will be directly connected to the NBR’s VOP server from the sales’ point.
“We appointed only 11 companies earlier for the software development but it is not enough to carry out the project quickly, bringing lakhs of businesses under the system,” the NBR chief said. Earlier on February last year, the NBR appointed 11 firms to develop the EFD software. These firms are- UY Systems, Ennova Technologies, Dhrupadi Techno Consortium, Symphony Softtech, UniSoft Systems, Mediasoft Data Systems, Best Business Bond, CSL Software Resources, Allied Information Technology, Jubosoft Information Systems and Divine IT.
According to NBR sources, any software company having four eligibilities can apply for being a part of the EFD project. The aspirant company must get registration from the Register of Joint Stock Companies and Firms Office as a public or private limited company. The company must have five-year experience of running the business uninterruptedly and must have experience of post-sale services.
Besides, the aspirant company needs the experience of accounting or similar software making, which have successfully been set up at least three medium or large scale business firms. According to the sources, the aspirant company will have to apply before a VAT Commissioner concerned. Then its commissioner will initially check out the software and send it to NBR member for VAT implementation and IT.
The member, after his or her observation will send it to an authorizing committee comprised of 5 members headed by the commissioner (VAT) of the Large Taxpayer Unit (LTU). The committee will finally decide whether or not the software could get approval. Earlier, the revenue authority in 2009, introduced Electronic Cash Register (ECR) at 11 types of sales and service centers to keep the transactions and VAT collection records.
However, the project was successful as the traders did not comply with it. The NBR later in the fiscal 2018-19 announced the introduction of EFD instead of ECR, aligned with the VAT and Supplementary Duty Act 2012. The government since July this year enacted the new VAT law, and the revenue board as per the law, made the mandatory use of EFD device for the businesses concerned.