Staff Correspondent:

The government has announced that individuals could purchase ‘Savings Certificates’ up to Tk10 lakh without showing income tax return submission documents.

However, an income tax return will still be mandatory for investments exceeding this amount. Previously, the threshold for exemption was Tk5 lakh.

The National Savings Directorate, under the Internal Resources Division of the Ministry of Finance, recently issued a circular regarding this change. This follows a gazette published by the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs, Legislative and Parliamentary Affairs Division, in June.

Based on that gazette, the National Savings Directorate has now allowed the purchase of savings certificates up to Tk10 lakh without the need for an income tax return submission.

The new circular specifies that proof of income tax return submission will be required only for investments exceeding Tk10 lakh in savings certificates.

This change means a significant shift from the previous rule, which required an income tax return for savings certificate purchases above Tk5 lakh. Now, the exemption limit has been doubled to Tk10 lakh.

Meanwhile, on 1 July, the Internal Resources Division (IRD) also issued a circular reducing the profit rates for five savings schemes operated under the National Savings Directorate.

The new profit rates, depending on the scheme type, now range from a maximum of 11.82% to 11.98%. These revised rates came into effect on 1 July.