A total of 10,404 people have so far legalised their undisclosed assets, including cash, worth Tk 14,459.40 crore under the special scheme offered in the budget for the current fiscal year 2020-2021.

They have also paid Tk 1,445.94 crore in tax by way of legalising the undisclosed or untaxed moveable and immovable properties, according to National Board of Revenue data available until May 25.

Of the total value of the legalised assets, 80.67 per cent or Tk 11,663.40 crore has been legalised in the forms of untaxed cash, bank deposits, savings certificates and other financial instruments by the undisclosed or untaxed money holders, the data showed.

The second highest amount of untaxed money worth Tk 2,513.20 crore has been legalised in the real estate sector, it said.

Only Tk 282.40 crore of the undisclosed money has been legalised by investing in the stock market during the period.

According to the NBR data, untaxed money holders legalised Tk 14,595.43 crore in the previous 15 years between the FY06 and FY20 under various schemes.

The government in the budget for the FY21 offered the blanket scope of legalising untaxed money with indemnity and the scope will expire on June 30, 2021.

According to the special scheme, tax authorities and other agencies will not raise any questions about the source of any undisclosed moveable and immovable property, including land, building, apartment, cash, bank deposits, financial schemes and instruments and all kinds of deposits or saving instruments or certificates, if an individual taxpayer pays taxes at specified rates.

The tax rates for lands vary between Tk 500 and Tk 20,000 based on the locations.

For building and apartments, the tax rates vary between Tk 500 a square metre and Tk 4,000 a square metre based on the location.

People are also allowed to legalise untaxed cash, bank deposits, savings certificates and other financial instruments by paying tax at 10 per cent rate on the total amount.

The NBR has also allowed legalising money by investing in the capital market by paying tax only at 10 per cent flat rate.

The regular income tax rates range from 5 per cent to 25 per cent.

The government has offered the money legalising benefit on various occasions since the country’s independence in 1971.

Excluding the legalised money in the current FY21, the highest amount worth Tk 9,683 crore was legalised in FY08-FY09 during the army-backed interim government.

Officials of the finance ministry said that the government might not extend the special indemnity for legalising such money and assets in the forthcoming national budget for the FY22 amid a spate of criticism and strong opposition from economists, businesses and other stakeholders.

Business people, economists and activists have demanded discontinuation of the facility, saying that it goes against the spirit of tax justice, integrity, fairness and the constitution.

Such an indemnity discourages honest taxpayers from paying tax while it rewards taxpayers who evade tax, they said.

The regular scheme for legalising undisclosed money through investment in economic zones and hi-tech parks and construction and purchase of buildings and apartments, however, will continue in the next budget, the officials said.

Under the regular scheme, the tax rate is 10 per cent for legalising untaxed money through investment in the economic zones and the hi-tech parks within June 2024 while the tax rates range between Tk 300 and Tk 5,000 per square metre for lands, buildings and apartments based on the location.