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Govt warns 12 insurance cos

Pay VAT by June 15 or offices will be locked

RAFIQ HASAN
The government has asked 12 general insurance companies to pay Tk 21.32 crore in evaded Value Added Tax (VAT) by June 15 and warned that if they fail to do so, their offices would be locked.
The ultimatum was given at a review meeting on VAT collection at the finance ministry yesterday.
State Minister for Finance Shah Mohammad Abul Hossain chaired the meeting.
He resented VAT evasion by the insurance companies and asked the NBR officials to expedite VAT collection drive.
The state minister turned down the insurance companies' request for allowing payment of the evaded VAT in installments and waiving of two per cent fine for nonpayment of it in the month following their premium
income.
The meeting was attended by Chairman of the National Board of Revenue (NBR) Dr Shoaib Ahmed, NBR member (VAT) Fakhrul Abedin, VAT commissioner Zahurul Huq, Controller of Insurance Habibullah and senior officials of the 12 insurance companies.
Earlier, an NBR investigation found that the 12 companies evaded a total of Tk 25.40 crore in VAT during the period 1998-2001.
The customs and VAT authorities issued show cause notices on them following the probe.
After getting demand notices, the companies paid Tk 4.18 crore so far. The companies and their evaded amounts are: Provati Insurance Company -- Tk 2.64 crore, Northern Insurance Company -- Tk 4.02 crore, Federal Insurance Company-- Tk 1.08 crore, Rupali
Insurance Company -- Tk 32 lakh, City General Insurance Company --Tk 56 lakh, Meghna Insurance Company -- Tk 2.75 crore, Janata Insurance Company-- Tk 2.38 crore, Eastern Insurance Company --Tk Nine lakh, Central Insurance Company -- Tk 5.12 crore, Prime Insurance Company -- Tk 2.43 crore, Phoenix Insurance Company -- Tk 71 lakh and East Land Insurance Company -- Tk 23 lakh.
Officials of the companies, however, termed the evaded VAT as 'outstanding' VAT.
They said the VAT remained 'outstanding' because of some 'informal systems' developing in the market over the years.
"Earlier, there was a system of doing business on credit and huge amounts of premium remained outstanding. So we could not pay VAT, " said Abul Kashem Chowdhury, General Manager of Provati Insurance Company.
"Now the government has prohibited doing business on credit and we are following it", he said.
None of the companies evaded VAT intentionally, he claimed.
Abdul Haq, senior executive vice president of Federal Insurance Company, said, "We have been paying VAT regularly. Some amount remained due and we pay it in installments."