NBR Audit Check 2023-24: Is Your TIN or BIN Selected for Income Tax Audit?

The complete guide to the NBR income tax audit list 2023-24

By the LegalAsks tax team · Updated 8 September 2026 · Reading time about 14 minutes

For Assessment Year 2023-24 the National Board of Revenue selected more than ninety thousand income tax returns for audit, the largest and most transparent audit exercise since the Income Tax Act 2023 came into force. If you filed a return for that year, this page tells you whether your TIN is on the list, how the selection was made, what the audit process under section 182 looks like from first notice to closure, which documents to prepare, and how to respond so that a routine verification stays routine.

How to check your NBR audit status online

The NBR publishes its audit-selection lists as long PDF files sorted by tax zone and circle. Searching a 1,000-page PDF on a phone is slow and error-prone, so we merged every list for Assessment Year 2023-24 into one searchable database. Checking takes under a minute:

1. Find your 12-digit e-TIN. It is printed on your TIN certificate and on the acknowledgement slip (prapti swikar patra) of the return you filed for AY 2023-24. It is also shown after logging in to the NBR e-Return portal.
2. Type the TIN into the box above and click Check Audit Status. Spaces and dashes are ignored; only the twelve digits matter.
3. Read the result. If the TIN is on a list you will see the tax zone, the tax circle, the return type and which of the three NBR lists it appears in. If it is not on any list you will see a “not found” message.
4. Act on it. Selected taxpayers should start organising documents immediately and wait for the written notice from the circle office. The audit clock runs from the date on that notice, not from the day you check here.

For VAT-registered businesses, the second box checks a 13-digit BIN against the NBR EFDMS BIN holder list (see About the BIN check for what that list is and is not).

The three NBR audit lists for Assessment Year 2023-24

Audit selection for AY 2023-24 did not happen in one go. After pausing manual audit selection in September 2024 to build an automated system, the NBR released the lists in phases. Our database merges all of them and de-duplicates the TINs.

Every row in every list carries the same assessment year, 2023-2024, which corresponds to income earned between 1 July 2022 and 30 June 2023 (income year 2022-23). If you did not file a return for that year, your TIN could not have been selected in this exercise.

How the NBR selected returns for audit

Historically, audit selection in Bangladesh was discretionary. Circle officers proposed files, commissioners approved them, and taxpayers often suspected that selection depended on who you knew. The Income Tax Act 2023 changed the legal basis, and from 2025 the NBR changed the mechanics.

Risk-Based Audit Criteria under section 182

Section 182 of the Income Tax Act 2023 allows the Board to select, or approve the selection of, returns for audit on the basis of criteria it sets. The NBR’s Income Tax Return Audit Instructions 2025, issued in August 2025, set out a detailed procedure for scrutinising returns, running the audit, preparing the report and closing the file, and made risk-based automated selection the default. On 28 April 2026 the NBR announced that 72,341 returns for AY 2023-24 had been selected by its Risk-Based Audit Criteria with, in its own words, no scope for manual intervention. The algorithm was capped at 200 returns per circle and floored at 20, so every circle in the country received an audit workload.

The NBR has not published the exact weighting of its risk indicators, but the guidance, press briefings and professional commentary point to the kinds of signal that raise a return’s risk score:

• large refund claims or refund claims in consecutive years;
• a mismatch between declared income and the growth in net wealth shown in the statement of assets and liabilities;
• lifestyle and personal expenditure (the IT-10BB statement) that looks low compared with income and assets;
• income, deduction or tax-credit figures that differ from third-party data such as withholding tax returns, bank interest reports, property registrations and vehicle records;
• businesses reporting low gross profit ratios or persistent losses against sector norms;
• unusual year-on-year changes in turnover, loans, gifts or foreign remittance;
• late or repeatedly revised returns.

Random selection

The first list, published in July 2025, took a different approach: 15,494 returns were picked at random by the automated system as a control group. Random selection has a deterrent purpose. Because any return can be picked regardless of its risk score, every taxpayer has a reason to keep the return accurate and documented.

Why automation matters to you

Because the selection was made by software on data already in the NBR’s system, no circle officer chose your file and no officer can remove it. That cuts both ways: it removes the scope for favouritism, and it removes the scope for “settling” a selection informally. The only route out of an audit is through the audit, by demonstrating that the return is correct.

What “selected for audit” really means

An income tax audit is a verification exercise. The Deputy Commissioner of Taxes (DCT) examines whether the income, expenditure, assets, liabilities, investments and transactions disclosed in your return are accurate, internally consistent and supported by evidence. It is not an allegation of evasion, and it is not automatically the start of a dispute.

Three points are worth keeping in mind:

• Selection is not a finding. Only about two per cent of the returns filed for AY 2023-24 were selected. The majority were picked because a risk score crossed a threshold or because a random number generator landed on them.
• A documented return usually closes cleanly. Where the explanations and evidence satisfy the DCT, the audit is concluded and you receive written confirmation. No additional tax, no penalty.
• An undocumented return is the real risk. Problems arise when deposits cannot be explained, assets cannot be traced to declared income, or the taxpayer ignores the notice. Preparation, not panic, determines the outcome.

The audit process under section 182, step by step

The Income Tax Act 2023 lays out a sequence that both the tax office and the taxpayer must follow. Knowing it lets you anticipate every letter.

1. Publication of the list. The NBR approves the selection and publishes the TINs on nbr.gov.bd; many zone offices also post the list for their circles on their own websites and notice boards.
2. Intimation of reasons – section 182(4). After receiving the list, the DCT of your circle must inform you that your return has been selected and state the reasons for conducting the audit.
3. Notice for documents and explanations. A written notice asks for specific records and explanations by a stated deadline. A genuine notice names the assessment year, the issuing circle, the documents required and the date for submission. Most notices give two to four weeks; some give less, so read the date carefully.
4. Submission and hearing. You (or your authorised representative) submit a written reply with indexed evidence and, where required, attend the circle office. Questions are answered in the order asked; each figure is tied to a document.
5. Audit report – section 182(5). If the DCT finds that compliance, income, expenditure or assets are not properly reflected in the return, an audit report is sent to you, usually with a notice directing you to file a revised return with explanations and evidence.
6. Revised return and closure. If the revised return properly reflects the audit findings and the resulting tax and other amounts are paid in full, the DCT may accept it and formally notify you that the audit is concluded.
7. Assessment – sections 183 and 184. If the revised return, explanations or evidence are not satisfactory, or you fail to comply with the notice, the DCT proceeds to assess the tax under section 183 or, on a best-judgement basis, section 184. Additional tax, penalties and interest may follow.
8. Appeal. An assessment order can be appealed to the appellate authority, then to the Taxes Appellate Tribunal, and on a question of law to the High Court Division. Strict time limits apply from the date of the order, and part of the disputed tax usually has to be paid to file an appeal.

Time limits you should know

Document checklist for an NBR income tax audit

Your reply is only as strong as its evidence. Start assembling these records for income year 2022-23 (1 July 2022 to 30 June 2023) as soon as you see your TIN on the list.

How to respond to an NBR audit notice

The practical rules below reflect what works in circle offices across Dhaka, Chattogram and the district zones.

1. Verify the notice first. Check the letter number, date, assessment year and circle against the list, and confirm with the circle office if anything looks unusual. Telephone calls, SMS and social-media messages are never official notices.
2. Diary the deadline. Note the submission date and the hearing date. If you need more time, apply in writing before the date and keep the receipt.
3. Reconcile before you reply. Compare every figure in the return with the underlying document. Prepare a reconciliation of bank deposits: which are salary, transfers between your own accounts, loan proceeds, asset sales, gifts or prior-year savings. An explanation without a document rarely persuades.
4. Answer in the order asked. Structure the reply to mirror the notice, number every annexure and add an index. Give the DCT no reason to hunt for anything.
5. Be precise about disagreements. If a preliminary observation is wrong, say which amount is disputed, why the treatment is incorrect, what the correct figure is and which document proves it. A general denial is not a defence.
6. Correct genuine mistakes promptly. If you spot an omission or a calculation error, consider filing a revised return and paying the difference; voluntary correction is treated more favourably than a finding.
7. Keep copies of everything. Retain a full set of what you submitted, with the date-stamped receiving copy.
8. Attend or send an authorised representative. A lawyer, income tax practitioner or chartered accountant can appear for you, but you should still understand and be able to explain your own return.

What happens if you ignore the audit notice

Silence is the most expensive response. If you do not reply, do not produce documents or repeatedly fail to appear, the DCT may complete the audit and assessment on the basis of the information available, which usually means a best-judgement assessment under section 184. That can bring:

• additional income assessed on unexplained deposits or assets, taxed at your marginal rate;
• disallowance of expenses and rebates you could have supported;
• penalties under the Act for failure to comply with a notice and, where concealment is found, a penalty on the tax sought to be evaded;
• interest and additional tax for late payment, plus the cost and delay of an appeal to reopen the matter.

Taxpayers who moved house or office and never updated their address with the circle are a frequent casualty: the notice goes to the old address, the deadline passes, and the first they hear of it is a demand notice. Update your address on the e-TIN system now if it is out of date.

Audit scams and how to verify a notice

Within days of the 2026 list being published, the NBR warned that fraudsters were phoning taxpayers, claiming to be tax officials and offering to delete names from the audit list for a fee. Some send fake notices by WhatsApp or email demanding immediate payment to a personal bKash, Nagad, Rocket or bank account.

A genuine audit communication:

• comes in writing from the office of the Deputy Commissioner of Taxes of the circle shown on the list, with a memo number and date;
• states the assessment year, the section under which it is issued, the documents required and the deadline;
• never asks for payment to a person, a mobile wallet or a private account. Government revenue is paid only through the automated challan (a-Challan) system or the NBR e-payment portal;
• never promises to remove your name in exchange for money, because the selection is automated and cannot be undone by an official.

If you receive a suspicious call, note the number, keep the messages and report it to your circle office and the police. Then use this page to check whether your TIN is actually on a list.

TIN vs BIN: which number should you check?

The income tax audit lists contain TINs only, so a company must check the TIN on its corporate return, not its BIN. A sole proprietor has both numbers: the TIN is checked for the income tax audit, and the BIN identifies the business for VAT purposes.

About the BIN (VAT) check

The BIN box on this page searches the NBR’s EFDMS “Taxpayer List For All”, the register of 16,860 Business Identification Numbers enrolled in the Electronic Fiscal Device Management System, printed by the NBR on 11 December 2024. It shows the taxpayer name, VAT division, VAT circle and listed address for each BIN across Dhaka, Chattogram and other commissionerates.

Two cautions. First, this register is not a VAT audit-selection list; appearing on it means your business is enrolled with an EFD or sales data controller (SDC), which the NBR uses to monitor VAT collection at the point of sale. Second, VAT audits are conducted separately by the VAT commissionerates under the VAT and Supplementary Duty Act 2012, and a VAT audit or demand notice always comes in writing from the divisional or circle office. If you have received one, contact your VAT circle and a professional before responding. When the NBR publishes a VAT audit-selection list by BIN, this tool will be updated to search it.

How LegalAsks can help with your NBR audit

LegalAsks is a business law firm specialising in income tax, VAT, company law and regulatory compliance. Our audit service covers the whole section 182 process:

• Notice review and strategy. We verify the notice, read the reasons for selection and map each query to the evidence you need.
• Document reconciliation. Bank deposit analysis, net-wealth reconciliation between successive IT-10B statements, and matching of withholding certificates with declared income.
• Written submissions and hearings. Indexed replies drafted to the DCT’s questions, and representation at the circle office.
• Revised returns and settlement. Where a correction is warranted, we prepare the revised return and compute the tax so that the audit can be closed under section 182(5).
• Appeals. Appeals against assessment orders before the appellate authority and the Taxes Appellate Tribunal.
• VAT compliance. BIN registration, Mushak returns, EFD compliance and VAT audit responses for businesses.

Call 0181-22-22-242, or book an initial consultation. You can also read more on our tax and VAT blog and explore our practice areas.

Frequently asked questions about the NBR audit list

এনবিআর অডিট তালিকা ২০২৩-২৪: বাংলায় সংক্ষিপ্ত নির্দেশনা

Sources and data notes

• National Board of Revenue, Audit List, Assessment Year 2023-2024 (random selection, 15,494 returns), nbr.gov.bd, July 2025.
• National Board of Revenue, Audit Selection for Assessment Year 2023-2024 (Risk-Based Audit Criteria, 72,341 returns), nbr.gov.bd, 28 April 2026.
• National Board of Revenue, Audit Selection V3, Assessment Year 2023-2024 (5,014 returns), nbr.gov.bd, 2026.
• National Board of Revenue, EFDMS Taxpayer List For All (BIN holder list), printed 11 December 2024.
• Income Tax Act 2023 (Act No. 12 of 2023), sections 182, 183 and 184; NBR Income Tax Return Audit Instructions 2025 (August 2025).
• The Business Standard, “NBR selects 72,341 tax returns for automated audit”, 28 April 2026; “NBR selects 15,494 tax files for audit in random move”, July 2025.
• The Daily Star, Faysal Islam, “Selected for tax audit: what taxpayers should know”, 20 July 2026.
• PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries, Bangladesh – Individual – Tax administration (audit time limits).

Database last rebuilt from the NBR PDFs on 2026-09-08. Duplicate rows in the official PDFs are merged; the count of unique TINs is shown. If you find a TIN on the NBR PDF that this tool does not return, please tell us so we can correct the data. This page is general information, not legal advice; outcomes depend on the facts of each case.