The government has made source-based income tax deductions mandatory from the monthly salaries of officials whose earnings exceed the tax-free threshold, according to a new directive issued by the Office of the Comptroller General of Accounts (CGA) on Monday.

The directive, issued by the CGA’s Accounts and Procedures Branch, cites the Income Tax Act 2023, which sets the tax-free income limit for the current fiscal year at Tk350,000 annually (equivalent to Tk26,785 per month for male officers and Tk30,357 per month for female officers).

Any government employee earning above these thresholds will now have income tax automatically deducted at source when their salary bills are prepared.

The circular further states that, under Treasury Rules SR 125, the responsibility for deducting income tax and other applicable charges from salary bills rests with the disbursing officer or drawing and disbursing authority.

All chief accounts and finance officers, divisional and district accounts officers, and upazila accounts officers, along with other relevant departments, have been instructed to take necessary measures to implement the directive.

The notice has also been forwarded to the Finance Division, addressed through the secretary, drawing the attention of the joint secretary (Budget-1) for oversight.

The directive follows a semi-official letter issued by the National Board of Revenue (NBR) and the Internal Resources Division (IRD) on 7 October, which clearly instructed all government departments to ensure withholding of income tax at source from eligible public employees in compliance with the new tax law.