The National Board of Revenue (NBR) has taken an initiative to form a separate cell to gather information on siphoned funds and scrutinise the incomes of dual citizens, officials said.

The unit is also expected to coordinate internal intelligence and investigation activity, and consolidate internal and international information exchange to increase the institutional capacity of NBR.

The cell will take shape in the coming days. "We are working on the matter," said a senior official of NBR, seeking to remain unnamed.

The tax authority took the initiative after Finance Minister AMA Muhith unveiled a plan to establish an income tax cell to collect information on money laundering.

The government took on the scheme amid a rising outflow of funds to different countries, including Malaysia, Canada, UAE, Australia and the US, through legal and illegal means to purchase property.

The unlawful outflow ate away 1.1 percent of the country's gross domestic product, according to a report on “Illicit Financial Flows and Development Indices: 2008–2012” of Global Financial Integrity -- a Washington-based research organisation -- published in June.

Bangladeshi citizens' deposits with various Swiss banks rose 36.02 percent year-on-year in 2014, according to a report of the central bank this year.

The NBR formed a team last week to prepare plans on how to bring back the laundered money and recover taxes. The committee submitted its report earlier this year.

In his budget speech, Muhith said the NBR is yet to make a significant move for money laundering due to legal and administrative weakness and capacity constraints, although different global agencies are now working effectively to fight the illicit flow.

The government has undertaken a comprehensive plan to build the NBR's capacity to address the issue and exchange information for taxation purposes, he added.