The BNP government is considering providing special benefits for startups, content creators and freelancers in its first budget. Initiatives have been taken to declare these sectors tax-free to provide incentives, said concerned people.
The proposed budget for the fiscal year 2026-27 will be presented in the National Parliament tomorrow, June 11. It is said that there will be surprises for the youth. In addition, the Finance Minister said that a special fund of Tk 400 crore is being formed for these sectors.
According to sources from the Finance Ministry and the National Board of Revenue (NBR), the government plans to lift all types of taxes to keep digital activities and income opportunities open for young people. Meanwhile, Finance Minister Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury said in the question-and-answer session in the National Parliament on Tuesday that a total of Tk 4 billion is being allocated in the budget for startups, women and young entrepreneurs.
Meanwhile, an official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that the government wants to encourage young people to be more active. In the future, tax exemption is being considered as part of the plan to further increase income from digital media. At various times, confusion arises about taxes in this sector. Freelancers in other sectors except IT now have to pay 7.5 percent tax. The government is considering withdrawing this tax.
According to NBR sources, the 15 percent VAT that is currently levied at the local level on startups will be completely exempted. The budget will propose a complete exemption of 15 percent VAT on the import of services by startups and 15 percent VAT on the rental of space and facilities by startups. These exemptions may be in place until June 30, 2035.
Apart from this, tax exemption is also being provided to the country’s startup companies. The turnover tax is being reduced to zero percent for startup companies, innovative enterprises and technology-based businesses. Currently, there is a turnover tax of zero.1 percent in these sectors. These companies are going to be exempted from this tax in the new fiscal year.
There may be an announcement that income earned from various international digital platforms, including YouTube, Facebook, and TikTok, will be tax-free for freelancers and content creators.
Funding is being
Talking about the Tk 400 crore fund, the Finance Minister said that in the current revised budget for the 2025-26 fiscal year, Tk 200 crore has been allocated for the ‘Startup Fund’ sector. In the proposed budget for the next fiscal year 2026-27, there is a plan to double this allocation to a total of Tk 400 crore for creating startups, women and young entrepreneurs.
In addition, low-interest loans are being provided to small and medium entrepreneurs nationwide through ‘Startup Bangladesh Limited’ and various funds of the Finance Department, the Finance Minister said.
What the experts say
Startup entrepreneurs say that the lack of domestic funding is a major problem for this sector. Therefore, if new allocations are made to this sector, this issue could bring positive results.
Startup company Shikho has more than 4 million users in the country. The company’s CEO Shahir Chowdhury told Prothom Alo, “The main problem in this sector is the lack of domestic investment. Most of our investment is foreign. But now foreign investment is not coming in that way either. So a fund of 400 crore taka would be very good.”
Apart from this, Shahir Chowdhury believes that tax exemptions will also have a positive impact. He said that along with turnover tax exemptions, reducing the price of mobile data will have a positive impact.
AKM Fahim Masrur, former president of the Bangladesh Association of Software and Information Services (BASIS) and CEO of BDJobs, said that turnover tax was an additional burden for loss-making organizations. If it is reduced, they will get some relief.
Industry insiders say that there are now more than a thousand startups, big and small, in the country. Of these, 50 to 60 have managed to raise more than a million dollars in investment.
