International Trade Law in Bangladesh: Legal Framework and Compliance in 2026

International trade law Bangladesh applies in 2026: the framework

International trade law Bangladesh businesses deal with in 2026 is no longer a quiet backdrop to customs clearance. The country is weeks away from its scheduled exit from the least developed country category, its largest export market has rebuilt its tariff wall twice in eighteen months, the European Union has rewritten its preference scheme, and Dhaka signed its first full economic partnership agreement, with Japan, in February 2026. Each of these shifts has legal consequences for importers, exporters, foreign investors and their lenders.

This guide maps the whole framework: the border statutes, WTO obligations, LDC graduation as of October 2026, trade remedies before the Bangladesh Trade and Tariff Commission, preferential agreements, US tariffs, EU GSP reform, sanctions and dispute forums. Where TRW has a detailed guide on customs, import duty, valuation, exports or letters of credit, we link to it rather than repeat it.

Summary: Bangladesh's trade law rests on three layers: international commitments (the WTO agreements, SAFTA, APTA and a growing list of bilateral deals), domestic statutes (chiefly the Imports and Exports (Control) Act 1950 and the Customs Act 2023) and the regulators who apply them, led by the Ministry of Commerce, the National Board of Revenue, Bangladesh Bank and the Bangladesh Trade and Tariff Commission. LDC graduation, US tariffs and EU GSP reform are reshaping all three in 2026.

Key point: As of 19 October 2026, the UN General Assembly had not yet decided Bangladesh's request to defer LDC graduation from 24 November 2026 to 24 November 2029. Contracts, pricing and compliance programmes should be planned for both dates until the decision is formally adopted.

At a glance

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Table of Contents

The legal framework for trade in Bangladesh

The international trade law Bangladesh applies works in three layers: international commitments (the WTO agreements, SAFTA, APTA and bilateral instruments), domestic statutes that make them enforceable at the border, and regulatory instruments such as gazette orders, SROs, Bangladesh Bank circulars and policy orders, which change far more often than the statutes.

Bangladesh treats treaties dualistically. A trade agreement does not by itself change the duty on a consignment at Chattogram; it takes effect through a customs notification, a tariff amendment or a policy order. The operative question is always which domestic instrument implements a commitment, and from when.

The Imports and Exports (Control) Act 1950

The 1950 Act is the Ministry of Commerce's master power over foreign trade. Section 3(1) allows the government, by order published in the official Gazette, to prohibit, restrict or otherwise control the import or export of goods of any specified description and to regulate the trade practices and procedures connected with them, including licences, appeals and fees.[2] Goods covered by such an order may be imported or exported only in accordance with a licence issued by the Chief Controller or another authorised officer, and they are treated as prohibited or restricted goods for customs purposes.[2]

Contravening the Act or an order made under it is punishable with imprisonment of up to one year, a fine or both, without prejudice to confiscation and penalties under customs law. A court may take cognisance only on a written complaint by a customs officer or by the Chief Controller or an officer authorised by him.[2] The policy orders and the registration regime all hang from this section. Our guide to import and export licensing in Bangladesh covers registration in detail.

The Customs Act 2023

The Customs Act 2023 (Act No. 57 of 2023) repealed the Customs Act 1969, and an authentic English text was published by SRO No. 441-Law/2025 in November 2025.[1] It governs declaration, assessment, valuation, warehousing, offences and appeals, and it is also the statute through which Bangladesh imposes regulatory, countervailing, anti-dumping and safeguard duties. Clearance procedure, duty layers and valuation are covered in our guides to customs law in Bangladesh, import duty in Bangladesh and customs valuation in Bangladesh. This article concentrates on the trade remedy provisions, which those guides do not address.

The Import Policy Order 2026-2029

The Ministry of Commerce gazetted the Import Policy Order 2026-2029 on 24 August 2026.[3] It allows imports under purchase and sale contracts as well as letters of credit, removing the US$500,000 annual cap on commercial imports without an LC, provides for free trade zones and central bonded warehouses, defines non-resident Bangladeshis for the first time, and refers expressly to FTAs, CEPAs and EPAs so that future agreements can plug into import procedure.[3] Export-side rules sit in the Export Policy and are covered in our guide to export law in Bangladesh; payment rules are covered in our guide to foreign exchange regulations in Bangladesh.

Bangladesh in the WTO: membership, obligations and flexibilities

Bangladesh became a contracting party to GATT on 16 December 1972 and has been a WTO member since 1 January 1995.[4] Membership binds it to the multilateral agreements on goods, services and intellectual property, including the GATT 1994 rules on most-favoured-nation treatment, tariff bindings and national treatment, the Agreement on Customs Valuation, the Anti-Dumping Agreement, the Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures, the Agreement on Safeguards, TRIPS and the Trade Facilitation Agreement.

What WTO membership means for traders

WTO rules bind states, so a private trader cannot sue on them in a Bangladeshi court. They still matter in practice. The valuation rules and the trade remedy provisions of the Customs Act 2023 track WTO texts, import bans and minimum values must be justifiable under GATT, and exporters can ask the government to challenge unlawful measures abroad. That is why international trade law Bangladesh practitioners read the WTO texts alongside the domestic statute.

LDC flexibilities and why they are ending

As an LDC, Bangladesh benefits from special and differential treatment: longer implementation periods, wider policy space on subsidies and access to duty-free preference schemes such as the EU's Everything But Arms. The most important for exporters is the exemption that has allowed export-contingent cash incentives. Graduation removes that protection, which is why the export incentive regime is being restructured toward WTO-compatible tools, as explained in our export law guide.

Bangladesh as a WTO litigant

Bangladesh has used the dispute settlement system successfully. In India — Anti-Dumping Measure on Batteries from Bangladesh (DS306), Bangladesh requested consultations on 28 January 2004. India terminated the measure by a customs notification dated 4 January 2005, and the parties notified a mutually satisfactory solution on 20 February 2006. The WTO records it as the first dispute in which a least developed country was a principal party.[5] It remains the model: build the record early and use the prospect of formal proceedings to negotiate.

LDC graduation: where the UN decision stands in October 2026

LDC graduation is the single largest legal variable in international trade law Bangladesh exporters face this year. Bangladesh, Nepal and Lao PDR are scheduled to graduate on 24 November 2026. After the BNP government took office in February 2026, it asked the UN Committee for Development Policy to extend the preparatory period to 24 November 2029, citing the need for more time to prepare for international competition.[7] The request was submitted on 18 February 2026.[8]

As of 19 October 2026, the General Assembly had not voted. The G-77 had proposed the deferral, and Commerce Minister Khandaker Abdul Muktadir said he expected a decision within a week and, failing that, within October.[7] In September the UN also established a Working Group on Smooth Transition for Graduating LDCs, co-led by the permanent representatives of Angola and Finland.[7]

What changes on graduation

LDC-only preferences such as EU Everything But Arms end after their transition periods, with stricter rules of origin; export-contingent incentives lose their WTO exemption; LDC transition periods under TRIPS fall away; and tools such as regulatory duties, supplementary duties and minimum tariff values come under pressure, as the BTTC itself has noted.[6]

How to plan before the vote

Long-term supply and distribution contracts signed now will straddle at least one possible date. Draft price-adjustment and change-in-law clauses to operate on either, and build origin files to the post-graduation standard now. A deferral is time to restructure, not a reason to wait.

Trade remedies: anti-dumping, countervailing and safeguard duties

Trade remedies are the part of international trade law Bangladesh has used least and will need most. The Customs Act 2023 gives the government power to impose three kinds of additional duty on imports that injure domestic industry, each modelled on the corresponding WTO agreement.[1] In June 2026 the BTTC formed a nine-member panel, headed by Md Enamul Hoque, Member of its Trade Remedy Division, to investigate complaints of dumping and other distortive practices, recommend protective measures and oversee related legal disputes, noting that Bangladesh has rarely used anti-dumping, countervailing or safeguard measures.[6]

The Bangladesh Trade and Tariff Commission as investigating authority

No anti-dumping or countervailing proceeding may begin unless the BTTC, on a written application by or for a domestic industry or on its own initiative, informs the government of prima facie evidence of injury; the government then imposes any duty by Gazette notification on the BTTC's recommendation.[1] Treat the application as a litigation file: product scope, like product, normal value and export price, injury and causation.

Anti-dumping duties under section 20

Where goods enter Bangladesh below normal value and injure, or threaten to injure, a like domestic industry, the government may impose a duty not exceeding the margin of dumping. Provisional duties are refunded to the extent they exceed the final margin, and with a history of injurious dumping the duty may apply retrospectively for up to ninety days. A duty lapses after five years unless a review justifies a further five.[1]

Countervailing duties under section 19

Where a foreign subsidy on the production, export or transport of goods injures a like domestic industry, the government may impose a duty not exceeding the subsidy. The Act defines subsidy in WTO terms and confines countervailing action to export subsidies, import-substitution subsidies and subsidies limited to a specific group. Duration and review mirror anti-dumping.[1]

Safeguard duties under section 23

A safeguard answers a surge of fairly traded imports causing or threatening serious injury. Provisional duty is capped at 200 days, a definitive duty lapses after four years unless extended, and the overall limit is ten years.[1]

Undertakings and appeals

Section 21 bars double remedies for the same dumping or subsidy and allows price undertakings instead of duty. Under section 22, a dumping or subsidy determination is appealable to the Customs, Excise and VAT Appellate Tribunal within ninety days, before a special bench of the President and at least two members.[1]

Defending Bangladeshi exporters against foreign remedies

Bangladeshi exporters are more often targets than beneficiaries. Bangladeshi jute and jute products, hydrogen peroxide, artificial staple fibre and knitted textile gloves face anti-dumping duties in markets including Brazil, Pakistan, India, Turkey and Argentina, and in June 2026 India's investigating authority concluded in a mid-term review that Bangladeshi jute exporters were still dumping.[6] An exporter named abroad should answer questionnaires fully and on time, keep cost and sales data auditable, and brief the Ministry of Commerce early.

Regional and bilateral trade agreements

Preferential agreements are where international trade law Bangladesh negotiates translates most directly into duty savings, but only if the goods meet the agreement's rules of origin and the importer claims the preference correctly. The table summarises the agreements that matter in 2026.

SAFTA and APTA

The Agreement on SAFTA was signed in Islamabad on 6 January 2004, entered into force on 1 January 2006 and began tariff reductions on 1 July 2006, covering Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.[9] The Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement, the successor to the 1975 Bangkok Agreement, links Bangladesh with partners including China, India, the Republic of Korea, Lao PDR and Sri Lanka, with its renamed framework in force from 1 July 2006.[9] Both depend on line-by-line concessions and sensitive lists.

BIMSTEC

The BIMSTEC free trade area framework agreement was concluded in February 2004, but negotiations on trade in goods stalled over differing positions among members.[9] A BIMSTEC goods agreement does not feature among the agreements the commerce ministry reported as live in October 2026, so it offers no preferences today.[8]

The Bhutan PTA

The 2020 preferential trade agreement with Bhutan remains in operation, with trade expansion continuing under it.[8] It covers a defined list of products on each side rather than all trade.

The Japan Economic Partnership Agreement

The Japan-Bangladesh EPA, signed on 6 February 2026, is described as Bangladesh's first formal FTA and awaits ratification.[8] No EPA preference can be claimed until it enters into force and is implemented by notification, but Japanese investors should map origin and sourcing now.

The 2026 pipeline

The commerce ministry reported in October 2026 that it is pursuing FTAs or CEPAs with ten countries and blocs and seeking entry to RCEP. Negotiations with the Republic of Korea are complete and await cabinet approval, with signing targeted by December; EU talks are expected to start in late October or November after both sides appointed negotiating teams; UAE CEPA talks reached a third round in March; four rounds with Singapore are complete; a first round with Malaysia on a 20-chapter FTA is scheduled for 27 to 29 October in Dhaka; and draft PTA texts have been exchanged with Nepal.[8]

Rules of origin in practice

Every preferential claim stands or falls on origin: a valid certificate in the agreement's form and goods that satisfy its value-added, tariff-shift or process rules. Customs can deny a preference after release, so keep origin files with production records, bills of materials and supplier declarations. Under international trade law Bangladesh importers bear the burden of proving origin, not the customs officer.

US tariffs 2025-2026: from reciprocal duties to Section 301

The United States is Bangladesh's largest single-country export market, and the legal basis of its tariffs on Bangladeshi goods has changed repeatedly. A 37 per cent reciprocal duty announced on 2 April 2025 was reduced to 20 per cent and then 19 per cent, the rate set by the bilateral Agreement on Reciprocal Trade signed on 9 February 2026. After the US Supreme Court struck down the reciprocal duties, a temporary 10 per cent tariff under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974 applied for its 150-day maximum.[11]

From 12:01 a.m. Washington time on 24 July 2026, a 10 per cent Section 301 duty replaced it, following a USTR investigation which found that Bangladesh and others had not effectively banned imports of forced-labour goods. It covers about 99.4 per cent of Bangladesh's exports to the US, brings the effective levy to at least 25 per cent, and excludes items such as goods under Section 232 tariffs. USTR is evaluating a three-year tariff-rate quota that would waive the additional duty on certain garments made with American cotton and textile inputs.[11]

The commitments that still matter

Whatever its tariff status, the February 2026 agreement recorded commitments with direct compliance consequences. Bangladesh agreed to prohibit imports of goods made with forced or compulsory labour, to amend labour laws to protect freedom of association and collective bargaining, including in export processing zones, to accept US vehicle standards and FDA approvals, to permit free cross-border data transfer and to cooperate on export controls and duty evasion.[10] Exporters should treat forced-labour due diligence on inputs as a US entry risk, and US-bound contracts should allocate tariff increases between order and shipment and allow repricing if a cotton-content quota is adopted.

EU GSP after graduation

The EU's new GSP framework, Regulation (EU) 2026/1395, was published in the Official Journal on 22 June 2026 and applies from 1 January 2027 for ten years. Bangladesh keeps duty-free, quota-free Everything But Arms access for a three-year transition after graduation, which would end around the end of 2029 on the current timetable.[12]

GSP+ now requires 32 conventions, up from 27; preferences are suspended where a country's share of GSP-covered imports in a section exceeds 37 per cent, against an estimated Bangladeshi apparel share of about 50 per cent; and post-EBA garments must meet double transformation.[12] Detail is in our export law guide; the legal task is to build sourcing contracts and origin files for the post-2029 rules now.

Sanctions and export controls compliance

Sanctions are the area of international trade law Bangladesh traders most often underestimate. Domestically, section 20A of the Anti-Terrorism Act 2009 gives the government power to implement UN Security Council resolutions, including Resolutions 1267 and 1373 and the resolutions on proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and its financing, by freezing assets without delay or prior notice, prohibiting funds or services to listed persons and preventing the supply of arms and related goods and technology to them.[13]

Penalties and bank obligations

Violating a freezing or attachment order is punishable with imprisonment of up to four years, a fine of twice the value of the property, or both. A reporting agency that fails to comply with BFIU directions or to freeze immediately faces a fine of between Tk 5 lakh and Tk 25 lakh, or twice the value of the suspected funds if greater, and Bangladesh Bank may suspend its licence.[13] Bangladesh Bank's guidance expects banks to screen customers and trade embargoes against updated sanctions lists and to run real-time screening on all cross-border payments, including SWIFT messages.[13]

Unilateral sanctions in practice

Bangladeshi law gives direct effect to UN sanctions, not to US, EU or UK unilateral measures. Those regimes still reach Bangladeshi trade through correspondent banks, dollar clearing, insurers, shipping lines and buyers' contract terms, so a lawful shipment can be blocked if a vessel, bank or end-user is designated abroad. Screen counterparties, vessels and ports, obtain end-use statements for dual-use goods and include sanctions warranties and termination rights. See also our guide to anti-money laundering law in Bangladesh.

Trade law enforcement agencies

A single transaction can engage most of the authorities that apply the international trade law Bangladesh has adopted.

Licences under the 1950 Act are issued by the Chief Controller or an authorised officer, and prosecutions need a written complaint from customs or the Chief Controller.[2] For mandatory product standards, see our guide to BSTI certification in Bangladesh.

Trade regulations and compliance steps

Compliance with the international trade law Bangladesh applies is a sequence, not a one-off checklist. This is how we structure trade compliance programmes.

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Keep the contract, LC, declaration and certificate of origin consistent, because inconsistencies are what customs and banks look for first.

How international trade law Bangladesh disputes are resolved

Trade disputes fall into five categories, each with its own forum, and choosing the wrong one wastes time that appeal deadlines do not allow.

Disputes with the state over duties and remedies

Customs assessments, penalties and confiscations follow the adjudication and appeal route described in our customs law guide. Trade remedy determinations go to the Appellate Tribunal under section 22 of the Customs Act 2023 within ninety days.[1] Writ jurisdiction in the High Court Division remains available against unlawful or ultra vires action.

Commercial disputes between traders

The Commercial Courts Act 2026 (Act No. 23 of 2026), dated 10 April 2026 and treated as effective from 1 January 2026, covers disputes on the import or export of goods or services, carriage of goods, insurance, contracts for building, selling or exporting ships and the ordinary transactions of merchants and bankers, including mercantile documents.[14] Pre-suit mediation under section 7 applies once the rules are in force, mediation must finish within thirty days extendable by thirty more, appeals lie only from the final judgment, and an appeal or revision to the High Court Division must be filed within sixty days.[14]

Arbitration of cross-border contracts

For cross-border contracts, arbitration with a defined seat, rules and language is usually better, because awards travel more easily than judgments. See our guides to international commercial arbitration in Bangladesh and foreign arbitral award enforcement in Bangladesh.

Letters of credit and payment disputes

Discrepancies, fraud injunctions and bank recovery are covered in our guide to LC disputes in Bangladesh.

State-to-state disputes

Only the government can bring a WTO or FTA case; industry supplies the evidence, as in DS306.[5]

Legal aid and support for trade issues

Government legal aid in Bangladesh is designed for individuals who cannot afford a lawyer, not for businesses. The Legal Aid Services Act 2000, as amended by the Legal Aid Services (Amendment) Act 2026 (Act No. 45 of 2026), provides means-tested assistance, and its mandatory mediation covers family, property and tenancy disputes rather than trade; see our guide to legal aid in Bangladesh.

For businesses, low-cost support is institutional. Chambers and trade associations advise on origin, registration and buyer disputes, the Ministry of Commerce and the BTTC receive representations on foreign trade remedies and market barriers, and the Advisory Centre on WTO Law in Geneva assists developing and least developed country governments in WTO disputes. None of these replaces independent advice where money, goods or liberty are at stake.

Trade law resources

The following primary resources are the starting point for any research into the international trade law Bangladesh applies. Always work from the current official text, not a secondary summary.

• Statutes: the Laws of Bangladesh database and the NBR's authentic English text of the Customs Act 2023.
• Tariffs and policy: the NBR SRO register, the annual Finance Act and Ministry of Commerce policy orders and agreement texts.
• Payments and sanctions: Bangladesh Bank foreign exchange circulars and BFIU guidance.
• Remedies and WTO: BTTC notices, the Bangladesh Gazette and WTO legal texts and dispute pages.

Working with an international trade lawyer in Bangladesh

Trade consultancy work is advisory (classification, preference eligibility, licensing, sanctions screening), transactional (supply, distribution and agency agreements, incoterms, payment structures) or contentious (customs appeals, trade remedy investigations, LC disputes, commercial litigation and arbitration). When choosing among law firms for trade law, look for a team that works across customs, foreign exchange and disputes, has appeared in the relevant forum and monitors gazette changes. A good first engagement is a short written review identifying the governing rules, deadlines, documents and realistic outcomes.

Mistakes to avoid in international trade law Bangladesh compliance

• Assuming a signed trade agreement has entered into force or been implemented by notification.
• Claiming a preference without an origin file that will survive post-clearance audit.
• Pricing long-term contracts without a tariff-change mechanism.
• Screening only customers, not vessels, banks, ports and end-users, for sanctions.
• Missing the ninety-day trade remedy appeal or the sixty-day commercial court appeal window.

What to watch in late 2026 and 2027

Four developments will define international trade law Bangladesh practice over the next year. The General Assembly's decision on LDC graduation will fix the timetable for preference erosion and subsidy reform. Ratification of the Japan EPA and the signing of the Korea agreement will create the first genuinely bilateral FTA preferences, with new origin rules to master.[8] US tariff policy, including any cotton-content tariff-rate quota, will continue to move.[11] And the new EU GSP regulation applies from 1 January 2027.[12]

Read the legal instruments, not the headlines, and build contracts that work under more than one outcome. If you need a clear view of how these changes affect your trade flows, explore our customs and trade compliance practice or contact TRW.

Frequently asked questions

What are the main laws governing international trade in Bangladesh?

The Imports and Exports (Control) Act 1950, which lets the government prohibit, restrict or license imports and exports by Gazette order, and the Customs Act 2023, which governs duties, clearance and trade remedies. They are supplemented by import and export policy orders and Bangladesh Bank foreign exchange rules.[1] [2]

When did Bangladesh join the WTO?

Bangladesh has been a WTO member since 1 January 1995 and was a GATT contracting party from 16 December 1972.[4]

Has Bangladesh's LDC graduation been postponed?

Not yet formally. Bangladesh has asked for graduation to move from 24 November 2026 to 24 November 2029, and as of 19 October 2026 the UN General Assembly decision was still awaited.[7]

Who investigates dumping in Bangladesh?

The Bangladesh Trade and Tariff Commission. Anti-dumping and countervailing proceedings cannot begin unless the BTTC informs the government of prima facie evidence, and duties are imposed by Gazette notification on its recommendation.[1]

How long does an anti-dumping duty last in Bangladesh?

Five years from imposition, unless a review finds that expiry would lead to continued dumping and injury, in which case it can be extended for a further five years.[1]

Which free trade agreements does Bangladesh have?

SAFTA and APTA are in force, as is a preferential trade agreement with Bhutan. The Japan EPA was signed on 6 February 2026 and awaits ratification, and a Korea agreement awaits cabinet approval.[8] [9]

What US tariff applies to Bangladeshi goods in 2026?

Since 24 July 2026, a 10 per cent Section 301 duty applies on top of ordinary US duties, bringing the effective levy on most Bangladeshi goods to at least 25 per cent.[11]

Does Bangladesh enforce US or EU sanctions?

Bangladeshi law implements UN Security Council sanctions through section 20A of the Anti-Terrorism Act 2009. US, EU and UK sanctions apply in practice through banks, insurers, shippers and buyers, so traders must screen against them too.[13]

Which court hears import and export contract disputes?

Commercial courts under the Commercial Courts Act 2026, which expressly covers disputes on the import or export of goods or services and carriage of goods, unless the contract provides for arbitration.[14]

Can a business get free legal aid for a trade dispute?

Generally no. Government legal aid is means-tested for individuals; businesses rely on chambers, trade associations and private counsel.