Govt approves VAT law amendment, cuts duties on dates, fruits ahead of Ramadan

The Cabinet on Sunday approved a draft amendment to the Value Added Tax (VAT) and Supplementary Duty Act, 2012, aimed at restoring the requirement for monthly VAT return submissions. It also approved significant reductions in import duties on dates, oranges and apples ahead of the upcoming holy month of Ramadan.

The decisions were taken at the 27th Cabinet meeting held at the Bangladesh Secretariat, with the relevant proposals placed by the Internal Resources Division.

According to a Cabinet Division press release, the proposed amendment to the VAT and Supplementary Duty Act, 2012, seeks to revise a provision allowing businesses to submit VAT returns every three tax periods, or three months, instead of monthly.

The provision was introduced in the national budget for the 2026-27 fiscal year, allowing taxpayers to submit returns within 15 days after the end of every three tax periods.

However, the relaxation created various obstacles to revenue collection at the field level, prompting the government to reconsider the provision and amend Section 64 of the VAT and Supplementary Duty Act, 2012.

As Parliament was not in session at the time, the President promulgated the Value Added Tax and Supplementary Duty (Amendment) Ordinance, 2026, on October 14 under Article 93(1) of the Constitution, following Cabinet approval.

On Sunday, the Cabinet gave final approval to the draft bill, subject to vetting by the Legislative and Parliamentary Affairs Division, to convert the ordinance into law during the current session of Parliament.