Reform body okays outline to separate NBR's policy role from revenue collection

Highlights:

• Revenue reform advisory committee finalised decision to shift policy formulation responsibilities to Independent Policy Commission
• Outline of the proposal presented during a meeting with Finance Adviser Salehuddin
• Digitisation and integration of NBR also on reform agenda

The revenue reform advisory committee has finalised the outline of a proposal to separate policy formulation responsibilities of the National Board of Revenue (NBR) from revenue collection.

According to relevant sources, the committee has finalised the decision to shift the policy formulation responsibilities to the entity named Independent Policy Commission.

The policy commission will not be placed under the Internal Resources Division due to  protest from NBR officials, said sources familiar with the matter. They, however, could not confirm whether the commission will remain under the control of the NBR.

Policy separation is just one of many reform agendas for the NBR. There are even bigger tasks, such as digitisation and integration, which remain to be addressed.

The outline of the proposal was presented during a meeting with Finance Adviser Salehuddin Ahmed in the capital yesterday.

When asked, committee member Md Farid Uddin informed TBS that the matter had been discussed with the finance adviser. However, he declined to provide any further details about the content of the discussion.

He said, "Policy separation is just one of many reform agendas for the NBR. There are even bigger tasks, such as digitisation and integration, which remain to be addressed."

Another committee member, former NBR chairman Md Nasir Uddin, declined to comment on the matter.

Earlier, the committee prepared a draft report proposing to separate the NBR's policy and place it under the Internal Resources Division (IRD) of the Ministry of Finance, effectively bringing it under the administration cadre. This sparked discontent within the NBR.

Subsequently, senior leaders of the Customs and Tax Cadre Associations of the NBR met members of the advisory committee yesterday to express their dissatisfaction.

However, committee member Farid Uddin dismissed the claim of such a proposal being made while speaking to this newspaper.

Govt to strip NBR of revenue policy formulation role 

In the report submitted a few days ago, the White Paper committee on the state of the economy, stated, "By creating a dedicated policy unit within the Ministry of Finance, the NBR can focus on efficient collection and enforcement, leaving strategic tax policy formulation to a specialised team."

Regarding the appointment process of the NBR chairman, it stated, "The current process for appointing the chairman of the National Board of Revenue presents significant challenges to the effective administration and governance of the institution."