Technology experts have warned that the Finance Act for fiscal 2026-27 has created a tax structure that favours computers over smartphones, arguing the policy will widen digital inequality, discourage smartphone adoption and primarily benefit a handful of foreign-owned smartphone assembly companies rather than consumers.
The concerns were raised at a seminar titled Impact of the Budget on Telecom and Technology Sector, organised by the Technology Industry Policy Advocacy Platform (TIPAP) at the BDBL Bhaban in Dhaka on Wednesday. Technology entrepreneurs, telecom experts and industry leaders discussed the implications of the new budget for the country’s digital economy.
Presenting the keynote paper, TIPAP Convenor and Bdjobs Founder Fahim Mashroor said import taxes on laptops, desktop computers, printers and monitors had been reduced by 50-70 per cent under the budget, bringing the effective duty on laptops down to 9.5 per cent. Smartphone import duty, however, has risen to 62 per cent — more than six times the laptop rate.
He said the tax cuts on computers were welcome for consumers, but imposing substantially higher taxes on smartphones was inconsistent with the way Bangladeshis now access digital services. Most people perform on smartphones the tasks they would otherwise carry out on computers, making the higher tax on smartphones unjustified, he said.
Mashroor alleged the policy had been designed to serve the interests of a handful of foreign-owned smartphone assembly companies. He also criticised the decision to retain a 20 per cent supplementary duty and 15 per cent value added tax (Vat) on mobile internet, saying the tax burden would continue to impede efforts to reduce digital inequality.
Telecom expert Mahtab Uddin Ahmed said telecom operators had successfully lobbied for a Tk300 reduction in SIM tax and lower advance income tax, securing benefits for themselves while consumers continued to shoulder one of the region’s heaviest tax burdens.
The tax changes would increase telecom operators’ profits but offer little benefit to ordinary users because of the high level of taxes imposed on telecom services, he said. Consumers currently pay more than Tk40 to the government for every Tk100 spent on talk time — a rate he described as higher than in any other Asian country.
ShareTrip CEO Sadia Haque welcomed the government’s support measures for startups but said the National Board of Revenue must ensure startup companies can easily access the incentives introduced under the new policies.
Dream71 CEO Rashad Kabir urged the government to extend the software industry’s income tax exemption beyond 2027, saying the artificial intelligence sector would require substantial long-term investment. As banks rarely finance software companies, retained earnings remain the industry’s principal source of investment, he said.
Bondstein CEO Mir Shahrukh Islam also spoke at the seminar, alongside technology entrepreneurs and technology journalists.
