The obstacle is not unknown to them either. Income tax, VAT, and customs still operate in separate realms; a taxpayer's complete profile is not available in one place. Moreover, tax policy and tax collection are housed in the same institution, with powers for assessment, audit, and enforcement being quite centralised. Information is dispersed, and decision-making power is centralised. The question is, why is finding a solution so difficult, even when the problem is known? To answer that, we need to look at the tax reforms of the last three decades.

In 1991, with the introduction of VAT, tariff reductions, and trade liberalisation, major economic reforms began. Initially, there were positive results. The government's revenue as a percentage of GDP rose from around 6.5 per cent in the 1980s to about 9. 6 per cent in the fiscal year 2014-15. But that momentum did not continue. Subsequently, initiatives such as automation, large taxpayer units, audit reform, and expanding the tax net were undertaken. However, tax exemptions, negotiations, and opportunities for personal decisions by officials remained. The VAT law of 2012 followed the same path—its implementation was delayed, weakened, and eventually enacted in 2019.

One trend is clear: Bangladesh has adopted various elements of a modern tax system, but reforms that threaten entrenched benefits and personal power have been difficult to sustain. Thus, the question is not just about what reforms are needed. What have other countries done in the face of similar challenges that Bangladesh hasn't been able to achieve?