Bangladesh Member profile
Status of notification in the reporting periods
2010-2012
2012-2014
2014-2016
2016-2018
2018-2020
2020-2022
2022-2024
2024-2026
Notification information
Types of restrictions
All biennial periods and all notifications
Top 10 HS chapters notified
All biennial periods and all notifications
Top 10 WTO justifications notified
All biennial periods and all notifications
Top 10 Non-WTO commitments notified
All biennial periods and all notifications
QR details
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Trade policy review
Latest Trade Policy Review (Report by the WTO Secretariat): WT/TPR/S/385/Rev.1
A. Import prohibitions and restrictions and import licensing
3.34.
Bangladesh prohibits certain imports, mainly to protect health, safety, security, the environment and natural resources. Its IPO, 2015-18 lays out numerous criteria and conditions for importation, including import controls and bans, import permits, licences, and conditions of renewal (Section 2.2.4).
3.35.
Bangladesh maintains a list of controlled goods and a list of prohibited goods that are contained in IPO 2015-18; the former remained unchanged during the review period. The list of controlled goods covers several agricultural and industrial items under 21 four‑digit HS product categories that either banned import, or allowed imports under certain conditions.[82] Import bans under this list include: shrimps (a major domestic produce and export item (Section 4.1.6)); poppy seeds; grass and bhang (cannabis sativa); opium; gaseous hydrocarbons; goods including petroleum oil residues; sodium cyclamate; artificial mustard oil; polypropylene and polythene bags; chassis with two-stroke engines of three-wheeler vehicles; three-wheeler vehicles with two‑stroke engines; and glass syringes. Bangladesh maintains a ban on trade with Israel (Section 3.2.3).
3.36.
The list of prohibited goods includes certain prohibitions, inter alia, based on religious, safety, social or health grounds.[83] These include: maps, charts and geographical globes; horror comics, obscene and subversive literature; books, newspapers, periodicals, documents and other papers, posters, photographs, films, gramophone records, audio and video cassettes, tapes, etc. containing matter likely to cause religious outrage; reconditioned office equipment, photocopiers, typewriter machines, telexes, phones and faxes, old computers, old computer accessories, old electronic goods; goods (including their containers) bearing words or inscriptions of a religious connotation; goods (including their containers) bearing obscene pictures, writing inscriptions or visible representations; live swine or any item prepared from pork; all kinds of industrial sludge and fertilizer, and any other products produced from sludge; and certain chemical insecticides and industrial chemicals. Furthermore, under other provisions of the IPO, imports of ocean-going ships, oil tankers and fishing trawlers that are over 25 years old are banned.
3.37.
Under the list of controlled goods, some imports are allowed under certain conditions and/or require prior approval. They include: furnace oil; certain insecticides; certain fishing nets; used motor cars of any c.c., and microbuses, minibuses, jeeps and other old vehicles, and tractors no more than five years old; used parts of motor vehicles; and firearms. Although import licences per se are not required for imports into Bangladesh (see below), in addition to the standard Letter of Credit Authorization (LCA) import procedure, a permit, clearance, prior permission or approval may be required for certain controlled or restricted imports, thus implicitly imposing import licensing requirements.[84] Several items (e.g. methanol/methyl alcohol, and crude soya-bean oil) can only be imported by recognized industrial units or stakeholders. IPO provisions require mandatory nuclear radiation tests for imported milk, dairy, edible oils, vegetable seeds, grains, and other food products; the relevant certificates must be submitted in conjunction with other required certificates to Customs.
3.38.
In 2007, Bangladesh notified to the WTO Committee on Import Licensing that its import licensing system was abolished in FY 1983/84, and that no import licence was required for any item entering the country.[85] According to the authorities, some items require prior permission equivalent to automatic import licensing. Bangladesh's notification under the 2012 Decision on Notification Procedures for Quantitative Restrictions is pending.[86]
B. Export prohibitions and restrictions
3.45.
Bangladesh continues to prohibit the export of several goods, due to various reasons listed in Annex 1 of the Export Policy 2015-18 (Table 3.2). Furthermore, certain exports are restricted; these are listed in Annex 2 of the Policy.
3.46.
Exports of agricultural commodities and manufactured goods are prohibited mainly for reasons of health, eco-balance, security, archaeological value, or maintenance of adequate domestic supply. Exports of certain items, such as wheat, onions, unprocessed shrimp, raw hides, and blue leather, are prohibited, so as to ensure adequate domestic supply. Exports of fertilizers produced by a state-owned plant remain restricted, so as to meet domestic demand to ensure food security. According to the Export Policy 2015-18, the Government, under special circumstances, can allow the export of prohibited goods; for example, during the review period, it allowed the export of soybean oil, blood plasma for test purposes only, and certain type of pulses in very limited quantities.
3.47.
Trade with Israel, including exports, is not permitted (Section 3.1.5.1). Re‑exports (i.e. the export of imported goods in their original or unprocessed form) are not permitted. However, goods may be re-exported if there is at least a 10% value addition and a change in the quality or size of the product. Bangladesh has no export licensing requirements. For certain products, an export certificate may be required from the relevant authorities.
WTO's environmental database (EDB)
The EDB contains environment-related measures that may qualify as QRs and therefore should be notified under the QR Decision.