NBR Names Five Firms as E-Return Champions

The National Board of Revenue (NBR) has awarded five institutions with the “E-Return Champion Certificate” under its Bangladesh Single Window (BSW) project. The recognition was given on Thursday, September 18.

The award-winning institutions are BAT Bangladesh, Sonali Bank, BRAC Bank, Renata Pharmaceuticals, and Bureau Bangladesh.

According to NBR, the recognition was conferred upon the country’s largest taxpayers in acknowledgment of their contribution to the government’s automation initiatives and their consistent support for positive government reforms.

The certificates were handed over at an event held at Le Méridien Hotel in Dhaka, organized to celebrate the milestone of issuing 500,000 certificates, licenses, and permits (CLPs) under the BSW project.

BAT Bangladesh was among the first to implement the paperless system immediately after its launch. The system, by eliminating the need for personal or direct contact in official processes, is ensuring greater transparency and accountability.

In addition, it is reducing the scope for harassment, corruption, and unethical transactions, while cutting both time and costs in import-export activities.

The government first launched the BSW project in 2017 with the goal of creating an online solution for faster and more transparent international trade procedures. Under this initiative, 19 government agencies were integrated into a single digital portal, supported by BSW software and an Advanced Risk Management System (ARMS).

Continuing this initiative, the government announced last January that, effective from February 1, handwritten or manually issued CLPs from seven designated government agencies would no longer be accepted. All such documents must now be submitted through the BSW system.