B Mirror Report : The government has reduced the existing customs duties on the import of mobile phones and related components. The import duty on smartphones has been lowered from 25 percent to 10 percent, a move that industry insiders believe could lead to an average price reduction of around 20 percent in the domestic market.
Two main types of handsets are currently available in the country. One includes illegally imported phones that evade duties, counterfeit devices, or refurbished old phones sold as new. These illegal handsets, often marketed under unofficial labels, are sold at nearly half the price of genuine (official) devices and are frequently used for criminal activities. To curb the use of such phones, the government has introduced the National Equipment Identity Register (NEIR) system this month.
Even before the launch of the NEIR system, mobile phone traders staged protests, including road blockades and shop closures. They argued that the introduction of NEIR would raise smartphone prices, putting them beyond the reach of ordinary consumers.
At that time, following discussions with traders, the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC), the National Board of Revenue (NBR), and the Posts and Telecommunications Division announced several measures to reduce the prices of legally imported phones. One of the key steps involved lowering duties and taxes. A decision to grant duty concessions on handsets was taken at an advisory council meeting on January 1.
As a result, the import duty on mobile phones has now been reduced by 15 percentage points, bringing it down from 25 percent to 10 percent. According to the NBR, this decision will significantly reduce the market price of imported mobile phones.
Explaining the impact, a mobile phone manufacturer and importer said that handsets currently face a combined VAT and tax burden of 61 percent. The 15 percent cut in customs duty is expected to reduce the overall tax burden by around 20 percent. Based on this calculation, the price of a smartphone costing Tk 40,000 could fall by approximately Tk 8,000.
According to NBR estimates, under the new duty structure, the price of each imported smartphone priced above Tk 30,000 could drop by up to Tk 5,500. The authority expects the move to encourage legal imports of mobile phones and reduce the number of illegally imported handsets in the market.
Alongside imports, customs duties have also been reduced for the local mobile phone assembly industry. To ensure domestic manufacturers do not face unfair competition due to the duty cuts, the NBR has lowered the customs duty on imported raw materials and components used for phone assembly from 10 percent to 5 percent.
This reduction is expected to lower production costs for local assemblers. According to the NBR, the price of locally assembled mobile phones priced above Tk 30,000 could decrease by around Tk 1,500. Currently, there are nine mobile phone manufacturing and assembly companies operating in the country.
