Government Forms 12-Member Revenue Advisory Committee for FY 2083/84 Budget Formulation

Kathmandu. The government has formed a 12-member 'Revenue Advisory Committee' under the coordination of the Revenue Secretary of the Ministry of Finance for the formulation of the budget for the upcoming fiscal year 2083/84.

The committee, formed as per the decision made by Finance Minister Rameswor Prasad Khanal on Magh 28 last, has already commenced its work.

Ministry of Finance Joint Secretary and Spokesperson Tankaprasad Pandey informed in a press release on Friday that the committee was formed to gather opinions and suggestions by discussing and studying tax and revenue policies that should be included in the budget with stakeholders.

A Joint Secretary from the Revenue Management Division of the Ministry of Finance has assumed the responsibility of Member-Secretary in the formed committee.

The committee ensures broad representation from government bodies, academia, and the private sector. Members include the Head of the Central Department of Economics at Tribhuvan University, a Joint Secretary from the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies, and an Executive Director from Nepal Rastra Bank. Additionally, two nominated finance and tax experts from the Ministry of Finance have been included in the committee.

Representatives from umbrella organizations of the private sector, including the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI), Nepal Economic Association, Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI), Nepal Chamber of Commerce, Nepal Industry and Trade Federation, and Federation of Nepali Cottage and Small Industries, have been made members of the committee, either as presidents or their designated senior officials.

This committee has been given a broad mandate to suggest policy reforms on issues ranging from traditional taxes like Income Tax, Value Added Tax (VAT), and Excise Duty, to taxes imposed on digital services and e-commerce. Furthermore, the committee will submit recommendations to the government regarding industrial promotion, review of customs rates and protection of domestic production, control of revenue leakage, prevention of money laundering, and removal of duplication in the inter-governmental (Federal, Provincial, and Local level) tax system. The committee is also tasked with finding solutions to problems observed in agriculture, energy, tourism, banking and financial institutions, capital market, and real estate transactions.

To make the study and suggestion gathering process specialized and effective, 9 different thematic sub-committees have also been formed under the main committee.

These include sub-committees for Domestic Revenue, Customs, Revenue Leakage Control, Industry and Investment Promotion, Agriculture Energy and Tourism, Banking and Capital Market, Non-Tax and Inter-Governmental Revenue, Macroeconomic Analysis, and Money Laundering Prevention. Specifically, a separate Money Laundering Sub-committee has been established to study the steps required to remove Nepal from the FATF 'Grey List'.
According to the Ministry, the first meeting of the committee has already been held. The committee has called upon all concerned government bodies, private sector associations, academia, and the general public to provide their respective opinions and suggestions on revenue reform issues.
As per the set schedule, the thematic sub-committees must submit their study reports to the main committee by the end of Chaitra. The Ministry stated that after an integrated analysis of the received reports, the committee will submit its final recommendations to the Finance Minister by the end of Baisakh 2083.

Based on that report, the government will determine tax rates and revenue policies in the Economic Act and budget for the upcoming fiscal year.