After the Import Policy Order 2026-2029: Four Implementation Directives for Bangladesh Bank, NBR, and Line Ministries
Situation
Bangladesh has issued the Import Policy Order 2026-2029 under Section 3(1) of the Imports and Exports (Control) Act, 1950 [The Business Standard, August 27, 2026]. The policy is designed to modernize Bangladesh's trade regime, reduce banking bottlenecks, ensure compliance with World Trade Organization trade facilitation standards, and support upcoming trade pact negotiations such as FTAs, CEPAs, and EPAs as Bangladesh prepares to transition out of the Least Developed Country category [The Daily Star, August 27, 2026]. The main operational change is the removal of the $500,000 annual ceiling that the previous Import Policy Order 2021-2024 placed on commercial importers using sales or purchase contracts without LCs; the new order allows commercial and industrial importers to import goods of any value through direct sales or purchase contracts alongside LCs [The Daily Star, August 27, 2026]. It also provides first-time regulatory guidelines for FTZs and central bonded warehouses, broadens free-of-cost raw material access for export-oriented industries, and defines "expatriate Bangladeshi" for the first time [The Business Standard, August 25, 2026; The Daily Star, August 27, 2026; The Business Standard, August 27, 2026]. These gains will be realized only when subordinate rules, systems, and inter-agency checks are aligned.
Evidence
- The previous Import Policy Order 2021-2024 imposed a $500,000 annual ceiling on commercial importers for goods imported through sales or purchase contracts without LCs; the new order removes that limit and permits direct contract imports by commercial and industrial importers for goods of any value [The Daily Star, August 27, 2026].
- The engine capacity ceiling for imported completely built-up motorcycles rises to 375cc, up from 165cc under the 2021-2024 policy [The Financial Express, August 25 and 27, 2026].
- For the first time, the policy lays out regulatory guidelines for FTZs and central bonded warehouses to improve raw material storage and supply and build a regional logistics and re-export hub [The Business Standard, August 25, 2026].
- Export-oriented industries have broadened access to import raw materials and production inputs on a free-of-cost basis to reduce production lead times, diversify exports, and support higher-value manufacturing [The Daily Star, August 27, 2026].
- The policy defines "expatriate Bangladeshi" for the first time and streamlines imports of capital machinery, spare parts, and raw materials by approved expatriate-owned industrial units using modern international payment methods under Bangladesh Bank foreign exchange rules [The Business Standard, August 27, 2026].
- Active pharmaceutical ingredients, excipients, auxiliary materials, packaging supplies, and medical devices require quantity, price, and regulatory approvals from the Directorate General of Drug Administration before import [The Business Standard, August 25, 2026].
- The government retains the power to relax import restrictions on controlled goods through special or general public notifications for food and energy security and for bilateral and regional trade pact commitments [The Business Standard, August 27, 2026].
- Trade bodies and export associations welcomed the LC ceiling removal and procedural simplifications; local manufacturers and textile millers cautioned that freer import pathways could increase foreign competition and pressure domestic backward-linkage industries [The Daily Star, August 27, 2026].
Prescription
First, Bangladesh Bank should issue a consolidated foreign exchange circular that deletes the $500,000 threshold from authorized dealer bank instructions, makes direct sales or purchase contracts a default-eligible settlement route, and mandates separate reporting of direct-contract imports to track foreign exchange exposure [The Daily Star, August 27, 2026]. Mechanism: foreign exchange regulation and bank reporting.
Second, NBR should align customs declarations with the new order by accepting sales or purchase contracts without an LC reference and by publishing port-level operating rules for FTZ and central bonded warehouse cargo, including raw material accounting and re-export audit, before the first-time guidelines reach the border [The Business Standard, August 25, 2026]. Mechanism: customs documentation and bonded warehouse procedure.
Third, the Directorate General of Drug Administration should publish a public checklist for active pharmaceutical ingredients, excipients, auxiliary materials, packaging supplies, and medical devices showing the evidence required for quantity, price, and regulatory approval, and should transmit approvals to NBR so customs does not demand the same evidence again [The Business Standard, August 25, 2026]. Mechanism: drug import clearance linked to customs risk management.
Fourth, the Ministry of Finance should convene Bangladesh Bank, NBR, and line ministries to monitor direct-contract import growth, domestic price and exchange effects, and complaints from textile millers and manufacturers; any use of the retained controlled goods notification power should be limited to food and energy security or bilateral and regional trade pact commitments, not protective discretion [The Business Standard, August 27, 2026; The Daily Star, August 27, 2026]. Mechanism: inter-agency import monitoring and notification discipline.
Risks and tradeoffs
The direct-contract route could become a documentation change without payment and customs surveillance, creating room for trade-based illicit flows or foreign exchange arrears [The Daily Star, August 27, 2026]. The FTZ and central bonded warehouse guidelines are first-time texts; without NBR port instructions they may remain unused [The Business Standard, August 25, 2026]. DGDA clearance remains a binding step for active pharmaceutical ingredients, excipients, auxiliary materials, packaging supplies, and medical devices, so an opaque checklist would offset the order's facilitation gains [The Business Standard, August 25, 2026]. Domestic textile millers and local manufacturers have already cautioned that freer import pathways could increase foreign competition and pressure backward-linkage industries [The Daily Star, August 27, 2026]. Broad use of the retained notification power would create policy unpredictability and undercut the WTO-aligned objective of the order [The Business Standard, August 27, 2026; The Daily Star, August 27, 2026].
Bottom line
The Import Policy Order 2026-2029 is a framework, not an operating manual; its gains depend on Bangladesh Bank, NBR, and DGDA converting its provisions into bank reporting, customs, and approval procedures. The Ministry of Finance should treat the direct-contract route and the FTZ and central bonded warehouse guidelines as an enforcement and infrastructure sequence, with safeguard review built in from the start.