Mobile phone prices to drop upto Tk 5,500 as NBR cuts import duty

Prices of imported mobile phones are set to fall after the National Board of Revenue (NBR) slashed customs duties, with each finished handset priced above Tk 30,000 expected to become cheaper by around Tk 5,500, according to government estimates.

The tax administration today reduced customs duty on imported mobile phones by 15 percentage points, aiming to keep handset prices within consumers’ purchasing capacity.

Customs duty on imported finished mobile phones has been cut to 10 percent from the existing 25 percent, according to a notification by the NBR.

As a result, the overall tax incidence on imported mobile phones will come down to 43.43 percent from 61.80 percent.

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At the same time, the government lowered customs duty on the import of components and raw materials used by local mobile phone assemblers to 5 percent from 10 percent.

This is expected to reduce the price of each locally assembled mobile phone in the same price segment by around Tk 1,500.

The government also expects the revised duty structure to boost local manufacturing, attract fresh investment, lower handset prices and curb the inflow of used and refurbished mobile phones.