The National Board of Revenue (NBR) has issued a notification exempting the supply and import of e-book services from all Value Added Tax (VAT).
The special order, signed by Barrister Md. Badruzzaman Munshi, the Second Secretary of VAT and Legal Affairs of the NBR, was issued on Thursday, January 16.
The notification states, “As it is essential to make e-book services universal and accessible to ensure the availability of books for students at all levels in Bangladesh, establish a modern and technology-based education system, and improve the quality of education—therefore, with the objective of creating such a system and making e-book services universally accessible, the National Board of Revenue, under the powers conferred by Subsection (3) of Section 126 of the Value Added Tax and Supplementary Duty Act, 2012 (Act No. 47 of 2012), hereby exempts e-book services (excluding newspapers, magazines, periodicals, and journals) from VAT at both the import and supply stages.”
The directive took immediate effect upon issuance.