The government has reduced the import duty on dates to 15% from 25%, and cancelled all the advance taxes, according to a National Board of Revenue (NBR) order issued Thursday.

Since 2022, over 60% duties were imposed on date imports for curtailing overseas buying, significantly increasing prices during Ramadan.

The duty reduction would cut the tax burden by 20% for importers, three months ahead of the month of Ramadan.

The next Ramadan is expected to begin at the end of February or at the beginning of March. The new duty cut scheme would remain effective until the end of March, allowing consumers to purchase at reduced rates throughout the holy month of fasting.

The earlier than expected duty cut is aimed at pre-empting any unwarranted price hikes and for allowing the impact to trickle down to the consumer market before Ramadan arrives.

Notably, Bangladeshi traders cater to the domestic annual demand of 1.2 lakh tonnes dates mostly through imports from Middle East and North African countries as well as Pakistan.