ABSTRACT
Property-based taxes have traditionally been the principal tax revenue source for union parishads in Bangladesh. One of the results of the reform is an erosion of the already small set of resources available to union parishads. Indeed, nearly all of the revenue sources made available to the upazila parishads were previously assigned to the union parishads, and union parishads became almost entirely dependent upon the holdings tax. Statutory and actual administration of the holdings tax differ significantly in rural Bangladesh, as they do in most developing countries. The differences are evident in all aspects of tax administration: assessments, record-keeping, and collections. Tax assessment is carried out by union parishad members in their respective wards rather than by professional assessors. The holdings tax imposed by union parishads in Bangladesh is a good example of a revenue instrument that contains few major theoretical flaws but has failed in practice.
