Business leaders have voiced strong opposition to the commerce ministry's proposal to remove the requirement for chamber-or trade-association membership certificates when issuing or renewing import registration certificates (IRCs), warning that the move could heighten the risk of fraudulent trade and weaken the existing compliance safeguards.
They argue that without mandatory membership, unscrupulous traders could more easily obtain IRCs, opening the door to non-compliance, deception, money laundering, and trade-based financial crimes, such as over- and under-invoicing.
Besides, they fear the decision could undermine trade bodies themselves as a decline in membership will threaten the financial sustainability of chambers and associations, as well as weaken their ability to engage effectively with the government on sector-specific issues.
According to the commerce ministry, the proposal emerging from a meeting held on December 21 last year aims at simplifying business processes.
Following the meeting, the ministry sent a letter on December 30 to the Office of the Chief Controller of Imports and Exports, instructing it to implement several decisions, including dropping the requirement for chamber or association membership certificates for IRCs.
Currently, applicants must submit membership certificates along with trade licences, bank solvency certificates, tax identification numbers, photographs, national identity cards, partnership or company documents, and prescribed fees.
Stakeholders say removing the membership requirement will eliminate a crucial layer of institutional verification from the process.
On January 19, in a letter to Commerce Adviser Sk Bashir Uddin, Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) President Mohammad Hatem urged to reconsider or withdraw the proposal, calling it impractical and risky despite being framed as a simplification measure.
Echoing BKMEA, major trade bodies -- including the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) and the Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI) -- have already written to the ministry seeking a review.
In his letter, Hatem said Bangladesh's readymade garment sector had built its global reputation on strict compliance standards.
"We regularly monitor labour law compliance, fire safety, and environmental standards of our member factories," he noted.
Allowing IRCs without mandatory membership, he warned, could enable non-compliant and unregulated entities to enter international trade, harming the sector's reputation.
He also stressed that membership certificates served as a basic form of institutional verification, and removing them could facilitate the creation of shell companies and increase the risks of money laundering and trade mis-invoicing, thus posing a threat to the national economy.
According to Hatem, the BKMEA's arbitration and labour cells play a key role in resolving labour disputes in coordination with the government, a function that will be weakened if factories operate outside association oversight.
The BKMEA further pointed out that the Trade Organisations Act 2022 was enacted to ensure the operation of businesses within a structured and accountable framework through mandatory membership.
BGMEA Vice-President Shehab Udduza Chowdhury told The Financial Express the rationale behind the proposal remained unclear and described it as potentially destructive for compliant businesses. BKMEA Executive President Fazlee Shamim Ehsan said the ministry had backtracked from immediate implementation following objections and agreed to hold further discussions before making a final decision.
The ministry also proposed other measures at the meeting, including allowing foreign investors seeking multinational IRCs to submit registration certificates from the Bangladesh Investment Development Authority instead of passports and work permits.
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