Tk10,000 Crore in Revenue Lost to Illicit Cigarette Trade

The illegal cigarette trade is thriving across Bangladesh, from roadside tea stalls to roaming vendors. These cigarettes are also increasingly available online, with home delivery options attracting a growing number of buyers. Online sales of illegal cigarettes have continued to rise steadily.

However, the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) says it is unable to shut down websites involved in selling illegal cigarettes online.

Officials of the National Board of Revenue (NBR) estimate that the government is losing at least Tk10,000 crore in revenue due to the illicit cigarette trade, though the actual losses could be even higher. The illegal tobacco market in Bangladesh is no longer limited to small-scale smuggling or counterfeit supply chains, but is instead being driven by organized criminal networks.

Recently, the NBR requested the BTRC to block Facebook pages, website links, and phone numbers involved in the online sale of illegal cigarettes. In response, the BTRC said that under the Cyber Security Ordinance 2025, it is responsible for moderating objectionable content on social media and blocking or unblocking websites. However, it does not have the legal authority to identify operators of illegal cigarette businesses or take action against them without proper identification of individuals and addresses.

The BTRC has advised the NBR to coordinate with law enforcement agencies to pursue legal action.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, a senior official at the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) said the responsibility for stopping the online sale of illegal cigarettes and e-cigarettes lies with the Department of Narcotics Control and the Ministry of Health.

“If these agencies provide a list of banned websites, BTRC blocks them within Bangladesh,” the official said. “But we have no legal authority to proactively search for or monitor such websites on our own. If the National Board of Revenue provides a specific list, we can take action. Determining whether products are legal or illegal falls under the jurisdiction of the relevant ministries, not BTRC.”

The official also cited technical limitations in blocking online platforms, noting that most websites selling illegal cigarettes are hosted on foreign servers, making it impossible to shut down entire domains. “We can only block access within Bangladesh’s domestic network,” the official said. “Even then, the sites can still be accessed using VPNs.”

According to research, the illicit tobacco market has grown by nearly 31 percent compared to last year, with an estimated 832 million illegal cigarette sticks entering the market every month. A significant portion of these cigarettes is produced through illegal means, while others are smuggled into the country without paying any duties.

Foreign cigarette brands are entering Bangladesh through covert channels, allowing smugglers to evade import duties of nearly 600 percent. These cheap and illegal cigarettes are rapidly gaining popularity among low-income groups and young people. As legal cigarettes become increasingly unaffordable, the easy availability of cheaper illicit alternatives is driving higher smoking rates, creating what officials describe as a “trap” for consumers.

According to NBR data, revenue from the tobacco sector stood at Tk40,411 crore in the 2024–25 fiscal year, compared to just Tk2,888 crore in 2005. This represents an increase of nearly Tk38,000 crore over two decades. However, officials say that the sharp rise in illegal cigarette sales has prevented the government from collecting the full amount of revenue it should be earning from the sector.