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Bangladesh Trade and Tariff Commission

department · partial (verified 2026-05-17)

Profile

Head
—
Role
Chairman
Annual budget
—
Staff
116
Established
1973
Legal basis
Bangladesh Tariff Commission Act, 1992 (Act No. 43 of 1992, gazetted 6 November 1992); amended by Bangladesh Trade and Tariff Commission Act, 2019 (Cabinet approval 17 June 2019) which renamed the body and expanded its scope and hiring authority. Origin: Government resolution of 28 July 1973 establishing a non-statutory advisory commission under the Ministry of Commerce.

Engaged on two concurrent tracks: (1) providing technical input on the US-Bangladesh Reciprocal Trade Agreement review (37%-to-19% tariff reduction), including assessment of domestic industry exposure to expanded US import access across 6,700+ tariff lines; (2) supporting NBR-led tariff rationalisation and BTTC's mandated role to supply 'research-based, supportive protection' for infant industries under the multi-year LDC graduation smooth-transition plan targeting EU GSP+ eligibility by November 2029.

Recent activity

Provenance & notes

BTTC was originally founded 28 July 1973 by government resolution as a non-statutory advisory directorate under the Ministry of Commerce; reconstituted as a statutory body corporate under the Bangladesh Tariff Commission Act 1992 (Act No. 43); renamed and scope expanded under the Bangladesh Trade and Tariff Commission Act 2019 (Cabinet approval 17 June 2019). Organisational wings: Trade Policy Wing, Trade Remedies Wing, International Cooperation Wing. Current_head is null: previous chairman Dr. Moinul Khan (appointed 28 August 2024) submitted voluntary retirement on 30 October 2025 and reportedly departed for Saudi Arabia; Ministry of Commerce held the application under review as of November 2025 and no verified successor has been publicly confirmed. Staff count of 116 (Banglapedia, 2010) is the only primary-source figure available and is likely understated today. Annual BDT budget not publicly disaggregated at BTTC level. Anti-dumping: BTTC holds statutory authority to investigate dumping complaints and recommend antidumping/countervailing duties, but Bangladesh has not yet imposed a formal WTO-compliant ADD or CVD in practice; domestic industries more commonly seek tariff increases via NBR rather than filing dumping allegations with BTTC (BFTI, 2024). GSP+: BTTC is tasked with producing sector-level RoO assessments for garments to support Bangladesh's EU GSP+ application before the three-year EBA grace period (ending November 2029) expires. US trade deal: aggregate CPD estimate of Tk 1,327 crore annual revenue loss from granting duty-free access to 6,700+ US tariff lines is the key fiscal exposure figure the Commission is expected to analyse for the BNP administration's formal review. verification_status = partial because the current chairman is unconfirmed and staff/budget figures lack recent primary-source confirmation.

Sources