How to import products from India to Bangladesh?

India has now become a significant trading partner of Bangladesh on a bilateral basis. Recently, there has been an expansion in the import-export business of the two countries. The trade between these two South Asian nations has risen in just a short time, irrespective of the pandemic outburst and the Russia-Ukraine war.

It takes less time and is cheaper to import goods from India, and exporting to India also has similar benefits. Thus, the matter of raising trade and investment between India and Bangladesh is a priority for both nations. Read further about India-Bangladesh trade relations, import duty, and taxes.

Trade between India and Bangladesh

From Bangladesh's point of view, India is a vast marketplace. Recently, Bangladesh has crossed about 2 billion USD in product exports to India. The former PM Manmohan Singh, in 2011, declared a reduction in the sensitive goods list of India. It was reduced from 480 tariff lines to only 25 for less developed countries under the SAFTA agreement.

Thus, Bangladesh has access to nearly 100% duty-free facilities on every good, excluding drugs and arms, within the Indian market.

According to several reports, Bangladesh has great potential to raise trade with India. Currently, India is the second-largest import marketplace after China. As per the Bangladesh Bank’s data analysis, in the 2017-18 financial year, goods worth 8.62 billion USD were imported from India.

In the previous 2021-2022 financial year, the imports were raised massively to 16.16 billion USD, nearly double to that in the 2017-18 financial year. This showed an imbalance between the two nations. However, as per the experts, such commercial discrepancies are not a concern for Bangladesh.

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Import Tax from India to Bangladesh

For basic raw materials and capital goods, Customs Duty shows tariff rates of 2 to 5 per cent. Further, it is 10 per cent and 25 per cent for immediate goods and final goods, respectively.

Besides Custom Duty, other taxes or duties, such as Supplementary Duty, Regulatory Duty, or Advance Income Tax, might too be enforced. However, this depends on the nature of the goods imported to Bangladesh.

Bangladesh Import Duty and Taxes from India

Due to the BiparJoy storm and the ongoing rains the import duty on Kharek has been raised by Bangladesh. It has now gone from ₹10.83 to ₹80. It has resulted in an upsurge in the prices of Kharek.

The import duty on dates has also risen from ₹10/kg to ₹80/kg. This is a serious situation, and the Bangladeshi importers have now grown afraid of doing trade.

Owing to lower-than-anticipated crop production, there has been a rise in cotton prices. Import of cotton is taxed at about 11 per cent, which includes cess and surcharges. 

Petroleum imports are still the indispensable source of revenue for Custom House of Chattogram, Bangladesh. Presently, NBR (National Board of Revenue) receives 34 per cent tariff, VAT, and other taxes from diesel, thereby accounting for 73 per cent of the entire fuel.

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Documents Required for Export to Bangladesh from India

Here are all the documents required for exporting goods to Bangladesh from India:

• Bill of Lading

• Shipping Bill or Bill of Export

• Export Order/ Purchase Order

• Commercial Invoice cum Packing List

• Proforma Invoice

• Letter of Credit

• Inspection/Quality Check

• Certificate of Origin (COO)

• Bill of Exchange (BE)

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 What Does India Export to Bangladesh?

As per the UN COMTRADE database on international trade, in 2022, India's exports to Bangladesh were 13.83 billion USD.

Between April and October 2022, India exported nearly 5443 commodities to Bangladesh. The items that India exports to Bangladesh include: 

• Cotton

• Cereals

• Distillation products

• Plastics

• Sugars and sugar confectionery

• Electronic equipment

• Coffee, tea, mate and spices

• Edible fruits, peel of citrus fruit melons, and nuts

• Manmade filaments

• Articles of iron or steel

• Dairy products, honey, and eggs

• Medicinal products

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Major Products Exported from India to Bangladesh

The major products that India exports to Bangladesh are many. These include wheat (worth 721 million USD), petroleum (worth 777 million USD), cotton yarn (worth 721 million USD), and other commodities (409 million USD).

Top 3 Goods Exported from India to Bangladesh

In the year 2022, the top 3 goods exported from India to Bangladesh were as follows:

• Cotton (value: 2.94 billion USD)

• Minerals, oils, fuels, and distillation products (value: 1.946 billion USD)

• Cereals (value: 1.57 billion USD)

How Can ExFrO Help?

ExFrO is also referred to as “Exporting From Origin.” It is a versatile merchant exporter for importing multiple goods from one platform and receiving numerous quotations for a commodity.

Exporting commodities to another country gives abundant opportunities for businesses wanting to expand their product reach. If you are considering exporting goods from India to Bangladesh, ExFrO is the right place.

ExFrO has a streamlined shipping process that assures on-time delivery of the products. Also, ExFrO packs and organises the shipment with precision as soon as the order is ready to export.

There is the option of product customisation, too. You just have to mention your customisation request while requesting a quotation. ExFrO will respond to you with the best possible solutions.