The Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) has urged the National Board of Revenue (NBR) to extend the renewal period for bond licenses of all direct export-oriented industries to three years, instead of the current two years. This request was made in a letter signed by Farooq Hasan, the president of BGMEA, on Tuesday.
In the letter, BGMEA highlighted the government’s efforts in providing policy support to sustain the growth of the garment sector. They emphasised that extending the renewal period for Import Registration Certificates (IRC) and Export Registration Certificates (ERC) from the Ministry of Commerce to five years, as well as prolonging the registration certificate from the Export Development Bureau and trade license renewal period to five years, have reduced exporters’ time and costs, facilitating ease of doing business.
BGMEA, therefore, requested a similar extension of the bond license renewal period from two to three years for all export-oriented industries, including those outside the Export Processing Zones (EPZs). They argued that excluding non-EPZ institutions from this extension would create discrimination. The organisation emphasised that a three-year bond license renewal period would not only support the capacity and growth of the ready-made garment export trade but also streamline business operations and reduce costs.
