Customs Duty in Bangladesh: How Import Duty Is Calculated, HS Codes, the Customs Act 2023 and the Baggage Rules 2025 (with Calculator)
An import is taxed six times over, each tax on a slightly larger base than the last, which is why a 25% duty on a consumer product ends up as a total incidence near 90%. This guide sets out the stack, where to find the rate for your HS code, what the Customs Act 2023 changed, and what a traveller may bring in under the 2025 Baggage Rules.
- Taxes at import, in order: customs duty and regulatory duty on the assessable value; supplementary duty on value plus CD and RD; VAT on that total plus SD; advance income tax on the value; advance tax (VAT) on the SD-inclusive total.
- The rate for each depends on the HS code in the Bangladesh Customs Tariff; NBR publishes the 2026-27 schedule chapter by chapter and the Import-Export Hub has a search.
- The Customs Act 2023 replaced the 1969 Act from 6 June 2024: self-assessment and green-channel release, fewer offences, 10% a year interest on late duty, a three-year refund window, and a one-rate appeal deposit.
- Under the Baggage Rules 2025 a passenger may bring two used and one new mobile phone, 100 g of gold ornaments duty-free, and up to 117 g of gold bars at Tk 5,000 per bhori, once a calendar year.
In this guide: The duty stack, worked through · Finding the rate: HS codes and the tariff · What the Customs Act 2023 changed · Baggage Rules 2025: what a passenger may bring · Bond licences and duty drawback
The short answer
Duty is charged on the assessable value — the CIF value (cost, insurance and freight) plus a 1% landing charge — at the rates the Bangladesh Customs Tariff sets for the goods’ HS code. On that value sit, in sequence, customs duty (CD), regulatory duty (RD), supplementary duty (SD, computed on value plus CD and RD), VAT at 15% (on value plus CD, RD and SD), advance income tax (AIT, on the value) and advance tax (AT, the advance VAT, on the SD-inclusive total). VAT and AT are input credits for a registered importer and AIT is set off against income tax, so the cost to a business is CD, RD and SD; the cash at the port is all six. The calculator below applies the stack to any set of rates; the rates themselves come from the tariff.
Rates come from the Bangladesh Customs Tariff for the HS code; the defaults (CD 25, RD 5, SD 0, VAT 15, AIT 5, AT 5) are typical for finished consumer goods and are not advice on any particular item. VAT and AT paid at import are creditable by registered persons; AIT is credited against income tax.
The duty stack, worked through
Take a consumer item with a CIF value of Tk 1,00,000 and typical rates: CD 25%, RD 5%, SD 0%, VAT 15%, AIT 5%, AT 5%.
| Step | Base | Rate | Tax |
|---|---|---|---|
| Assessable value (CIF + 1%) | — | Tk 1,01,000 | |
| Customs duty | 1,01,000 | 25% | 25,250 |
| Regulatory duty | 1,01,000 | 5% | 5,050 |
| Supplementary duty | 1,31,300 | 0% | 0 |
| VAT | 1,31,300 | 15% | 19,695 |
| Advance income tax | 1,01,000 | 5% | 5,050 |
| Advance tax (VAT) | 1,31,300 | 5% | 6,565 |
| Total at the port | Tk 61,610 — 61% of the assessable value | ||
Add a 45% supplementary duty, as on a 1,200cc car, and the incidence passes 130%: NBR’s own 2026-27 table shows total tax incidence of 135.91% for a 1,000–1,200cc petrol car, 159.80% for 1,201–1,600cc, 73.44% for a plug-in hybrid up to 1,800cc, 64.25% for an electric car costing up to US$25,000 and 80.18% for one between US$25,000 and 50,000. Capital machinery and industrial raw materials sit at the other end, at 1% CD with VAT often exempt and AT at 3% for registered manufacturers. The customs value itself is a frequent dispute: where the declared price is doubted the officer may assess on the transaction value of identical or similar goods under the valuation rules, and that assessment is appealable.
Finding the rate: HS codes and the tariff
Every product has an eight-digit HS code under the Harmonised System, and the rate of each duty is fixed against that code in the First Schedule to the Customs Act — the Bangladesh Customs Tariff, republished each July with the Finance Act. For 2026-27 use NBR’s tariff-schedule page (year selector, chapter PDFs) and the budget-at-a-glance change lists for CD, SD, RD, VAT, AT and AIT; the NBR Import-Export Hub offers an HS search and an approximate duty calculator, though its data lags a year for some chapters. Classification is where importers lose most money: a part classified as the finished machine, or a food preparation classified as a confectionery, can double the bill. Where the position is unclear the Act provides an advance ruling on classification and valuation that binds customs for the goods described — worth the fee for any product you will import repeatedly.
Exemptions and concessions run by SRO: capital machinery, raw materials for export industries, items for economic zones, and a long list of sectoral concessions, each with conditions (bond, end-use, Invest Bangladesh (formerly BIDA) registration) that must be in place at the time of entry. The importer also needs an IRC (see our IRC/ERC guide) and a BIN, and the bill of entry is itself one of the s.264 transactions that require a proof of submission of income tax return.
What the Customs Act 2023 changed
The Customs Act 2023 (Act 57 of 2023) replaced the 1969 Act with effect from 6 June 2024, and its authentic English text was published in November 2025. For an importer the practical changes are these: self-assessment with green-channel release on the declaration for compliant traders and authorised economic operators; the number of offences cut from over a hundred to forty-five; interest at 10% a year on duty paid late; a double penalty for a repeat offence but a penalty waiver for voluntary disclosure before an investigation begins; the window to claim a refund extended from three months to three years; amendment and withdrawal of declarations; and statutory footing for advance rulings and for anti-money-laundering checks at the border. The 2026 Finance Act added free-trade-zone provisions and raised the central bonded warehouse ceiling to Tk 5 crore.
Appeals. An order of an officer below Commissioner goes to the Commissioner (Appeals); a Commissioner’s order goes straight to the Customs, Excise and VAT Appellate Tribunal; from the Tribunal a reference lies to the High Court Division. The 2026 amendments cut the pre-deposit for indirect-tax appeals to 1% at the Commissioner (Appeals) and the Tribunal and 2% at the High Court. The time limits under the 2023 Act — the 1969 Act allowed three months at each stage — are being confirmed against the English text and will be added here. Also new in 2026: a Free Trade Zone regime (manufacturing, trading and re-packing without a bonded licence, with duty-deferred sale to the domestic area); the AEO audit-report requirement dropped and green-channel minimums of 40% / 60% / 80% set; the manufacturer’s invoice accepted as transaction value for brand-new electric vehicles; the central bonded warehouse general bond raised to Tk 5 crore (from Tk 1 crore); and international valuation reports and ISO-accredited lab results made admissible.
Baggage Rules 2025: what a passenger may bring
The Non-Tourist Passenger (Baggage) Rules 2025 (SRO 261 of 3 June 2025, amended by SRO 312 of 2 July 2025) govern what arriving passengers bring in. Allowances are per calendar year, not per trip, and under-12s have no gold allowance.
| Item | Duty-free allowance | Beyond it |
|---|---|---|
| Mobile phones | Two used and one new phone per calendar year; expatriate workers with a BMET card and six months abroad, two new phones | Duty under Rule 10 on extra phones (the amounts in the 2025 schedule are being confirmed) |
| Gold ornaments | Up to 100 g, no more than 12 pieces of one kind, once a year | Excess liable to confiscation |
| Gold bars or ingots | None duty-free; up to 117 g (10 bhori) may be brought on payment of Tk 5,000 per bhori (11.664 g) — Tk 50,000 for the full 117 g — once a calendar year | Excess confiscated; undeclared gold is seized and prosecuted |
| Silver | 200 g of ornaments | Bars up to 234 g dutiable |
| Television | Up to 29 inches | 30–36″ Tk 10,000; 37–42″ 20,000; 43–46″ 30,000; 47–52″ 50,000; 53–65″ 70,000; 66″ and above 90,000 |
| Computers | One desktop or laptop (with UPS), one scanner, one printer | Professional and DSLR cameras Tk 15,000; refrigerator 5,000; split AC 15,000–20,000; washing machine or dishwasher 3,000 |
| Liquor | Bangladeshi passport holders: none; foreigners: one litre | — |
Declare on the online baggage form (D-1) before leaving the customs hall. The rules replaced a per-trip gold allowance with a per-year one and raised the bar duty from Tk 4,000; a traveller who last read the rules in 2024 will be caught out.
Bond licences and duty drawback
Export-oriented industries import inputs duty-free under a bond licence issued by the Customs Bond Commissionerate (Dhaka or Chattogram): a special bond for 100% export garment factories, a general bond for other 100% exporters, deemed exporters, accessories makers and diplomatic or duty-free shops. Inputs are warehoused for up to 24 months (extendable), consumed against a utilisation declaration or permission, and audited annually; leakage into the local market is the offence the bond regime polices hardest. A manufacturer that has paid duty on inputs later used in exports may instead claim duty drawback from the Duty Exemption and Drawback Office (DEDO), at flat or actual rates, within the time limits DEDO publishes. We advise on which regime fits a new exporter before the first import, because changing later is slow.
Classify
We fix the HS code with an advance ruling where the classification is arguable.
Cost the stack
A landed-cost sheet for each product line, with the creditable and non-creditable taxes separated.
Set up the licences
IRC, BIN, and bond or Invest Bangladesh registration where a concession depends on it.
Defend the assessment
Where customs reassesses value or classification, we take it to the Commissioner (Appeals) and the Tribunal.
Common questions
How is customs duty calculated in Bangladesh?
On the assessable value (CIF plus 1%): customs duty and regulatory duty on the value; supplementary duty on value plus CD and RD; VAT at 15% on that plus SD; advance income tax on the value; advance tax (VAT) on the SD-inclusive total. The rates depend on the HS code.
Where do I find the duty rate for my product?
In the Bangladesh Customs Tariff for its HS code: NBR's tariff-schedule page publishes the 2026-27 chapters, and the Import-Export Hub has a search and an approximate calculator.
What is the import duty on a car?
It depends on engine size and type. NBR's 2026-27 table gives total tax incidence of about 136% for a 1,000–1,200cc petrol car, 160% for 1,201–1,600cc, 73% for a plug-in hybrid up to 1,800cc and 64% for an electric car up to US$25,000.
When did the Customs Act 2023 come into force?
On 6 June 2024, replacing the Customs Act 1969. It brought self-assessment, fewer offences, 10% annual interest on late duty, a three-year refund window and advance rulings.
How many mobile phones can I bring from abroad?
Two used and one new phone per calendar year duty-free under the Baggage Rules 2025; expatriate workers with a BMET card and six months abroad may bring two new phones. Extra phones are dutiable.
How much gold can a passenger bring?
Up to 100 g of ornaments duty-free (12 pieces of a kind), and up to 117 g of gold bars on payment of Tk 5,000 per bhori, each once a calendar year. Undeclared gold is seized.
Can a registered business recover the VAT paid at import?
Yes. VAT and advance tax paid at import are input credits in the monthly VAT return, and advance income tax is set off against income tax. Customs, regulatory and supplementary duty are costs.
How do I appeal a customs assessment?
To the Commissioner (Appeals) for an order of a lower officer, or directly to the Customs, Excise and VAT Appellate Tribunal for a Commissioner's order, with a 1% pre-deposit since 2026; then by reference to the High Court Division.
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Importing something new, or disputing an assessment?
We will cost the duty stack, fix the classification and, if customs disagrees, argue it. A written assessment costs nothing.
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