Staff Reporter :
The Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) has increased fees for all services provided to exporters, effective on March 01.
This includes a 50 percent rise in the cost of all export-related forms, and increase in fees for GSP registration, renewal, and certificate issuance for both textile and non-textile products, according to a notification issued by EPB on Saturday.
The fee adjustments range from a minimum increase of Tk100 to a maximum of Tk 3,000.
Exporters have expressed concerns, stating the increases do not align with efforts to reduce business costs.
GSP certificate issuance has been increased from Tk 500 to Tk 600, with a Tk 500 fee for applications processed after 24 hours. Certificates of Origin (SAPTA, SAFTA, China, Korea, Chile, etc) have been increased by Tk 100.
Textile product registration has been increased from Tk 5,000 to Tk 7,500, and textile product registration renewal from Tkn 3,000 to Tk 4,000.
Non-textile product registration has been increased from Tk 2,000 to Tk 5,000, and non-textile product registration renewal from Tk 1,000 to Tk 3,000.
Preferential Certificate of Origin forms (GSP, SAFTA, etc) have been increased from Tk 200 to Tk 300.
A 15 percent VAT will be added to all fees, said the EPB notice.
According to the notice, exporters are required to obtain these registrations and certificates to export goods.
The EPB projects issuing 90,000 GSP certificates and 140,000 Certificates of Origin in the current fiscal year, aiming for Tk 11 crore in revenue, are consistent with the previous year’s earnings.
Fazlul Haque, former president of the Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA), said, “The fee increases are relatively small compared to overall export costs, but as a non-commercial organization, the EPB should not be raising fees. This could encourage similar increases from other agencies.”
EPB Vice Chairman Md Anwar Hossain explained the fee adjustments were necessary due to rising operational costs, including increased paper prices.
“Fees had not been adjusted since 2014, and the current increases were deemed necessary after careful review by the EPB board,” he added.
