Staff Correspondent

The government has given the final approval to the draft ‘Revenue Policy and Revenue Management Ordinance 2025’, said CA’s Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam on Thursday.

Briefing reporters at the Foreign Service Academy in the capital after a meeting of the Council of Advisers, the press secretary said the draft ordinance received the final approval at the meeting.

Under the new structure, he said, the National Board of Revenue (NBR) will be split into two divisions -- Revenue Policy Division and Revenue Management Division.

The head or secretary of the Revenue Policy Division may be appointed from any cadre of government service, based on merit, experience and fairness, he said.

The decision was made on the basis of recommendations from a five-member cabinet committee headed by Energy Adviser Fouzul Kabir Khan, the press secretary added.

The revised ordinance brought amendments to 11 sections of the previously issued ordinance. It ensures that, instead of appointing officials from any specific cadre, only specialised and qualified officials will be posted to the secretary-level and other positions in both the Revenue Policy and Revenue Management divisions.

As per the provisions, any government official with experience in macroeconomics, trade policy, planning, revenue policy or revenue management may be appointed as secretary of the Revenue Policy Division.

On the other hand, a qualified official with experience in revenue collection will be eligible for appointment as secretary of the Revenue Management Division.

Earlier, in May, the government dissolved the NBR through a new ordinance, a move that sparked dissatisfaction among existing officials.

They began protests in mid-May and, by late June, even staged programmes that disrupted port operations.

So far, 36 officials have been suspended, five sent on compulsory retirement and nearly 400 transferred in connection with the movement.