Govt grants tax relief on imports of raw materials for pharmaceuticals

The relief applies to nine ingredients used in the production of cancer medication

The government has granted tax exemptions on the import of pharmaceutical raw materials, including nine ingredients used in the production of cancer medicines.

The budget for the 2026-27 fiscal year was presented in parliament at 3pm on Thursday.

The budget proposal says tax rebate facilities have been extended to the import of nine raw materials used in manufacturing cancer drugs.

“To make the country capable of producing affordable cancer medicines and achieve greater self-reliance, nine additional ingredients have been included in the existing concessional duty facility for importing raw materials,” the proposal said.

“It has been proposed that import duty and VAT on these items be reduced to zero percent.”

The budget also proposed the complete withdrawal of import duties on 51 new raw materials used in the production of active pharmaceutical ingredients (API).

In addition, concessional facilities have been proposed for the import of 17 new raw materials used in the pharmaceutical industry.

According to the budget proposal, the decision was taken to maintain the export growth of Bangladeshi pharmaceuticals in the international market, by including 17 additional basic raw materials under the existing concessional facility and reducing their import duty to zero percent.