STAR BUSINESS REPORT

The government has withdrawn a proposal that would have allowed people to legalise undisclosed money through property transactions after it drew widespread criticism.

It has also raised the tax-free income threshold and reduced corporate tax rates for private educational institutions from the levels proposed in the national budget for fiscal year 2026-27.

Parliament passed the revised Finance Bill 2026 yesterday after Finance Minister Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury tabled these amendments.

Under the initial proposal, individuals would have been able to regularise the undisclosed portion of a property transaction by paying income tax at the applicable rate.

According to the provision, no authority would be allowed to question such disclosures. If legal proceedings had already been initiated, the taxpayer would have had to pay an additional 20 percent on top of the applicable tax.

During the budget discussion yesterday, Prime Minister Tarique Rahman called for the provision to be withdrawn.

The prime minister said many people in Bangladesh do not register land at its actual market value. Instead, land is often registered at a lower declared value, creating complications for taxpayers because the true purchase price is not shown in the registration documents.

He said the provision was intended to address that problem. “But some people have interpreted it as a scope for legalising undisclosed money. That is the perception held by many.”

Respecting that “public sentiment”, the prime minister requested the finance minister to withdraw the proposal.

Earlier, the interim government had abolished a similar Awami League-era provision that allowed undisclosed wealth to be legalised by paying a flat 15 percent tax.

CORPORATE TAX CUTS

Corporate tax for private universities, medical colleges, dental colleges, engineering colleges and ICT-dedicated institutions has been reduced from the proposed 10 percent to 5 percent.