Enrolment-certificate tenure for exporters is being extended to five years from existing one year under efforts to enhance the ease of doing business, particularly to facilitate preferential extort trade, sources said.
The Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) has decided to extend the tenure of its enrolment certificate for exporters, who need it to avail preferential market access under GSP facilities and treaties of different blocs.
Presently, the exporters need to get their enrolment certificate renewed every year to avail services from the bureau.
The EPB now has decided that the tenure of the certificate will be up to five years but the exporters will have the choice to avail registration as per their will, the sources said.
An exporter in his or her application will mention for how many years they need the enrolment. Fees will be charged as per the tenure and the value-added tax will be realised accordingly.
The EPB provides various types of services to the exporters which include issuance of GSP (Generalised Scheme of Preference) certificate, South Asian Free Trade Area (SAFTA) certificate, SAARC Preferential Trading Arrangement (SAPTA) certificate, Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement (APTA certificate, and services linked to Registered Exporter (REX) system.
These certificates are required for exporters to avail duty benefits under various tariff facilities offered by developing and developed countries to least-developed Bangladesh to help its economy grow.
And, according to officials concerned, an up-to-date enrolment certificate at the EPB is mandatory for exporters to get services from the trade facilitator.
Contacted, a senior EPB official told the FE extension of tenure of such certification was a longstanding demand of businesses as they need to have the certificate renewed annually, which means "waste of time".
"Now they will have choice to get enrolled for up to five years or according to their will. Thus they would be able to avoid the hassles linked to renewing them every year," he says.
Economists say reform of trade and business processes is imperative to enhance Bangladesh's economic growth through improving the ease-of-doing-business ambiance attuned with the country's LDC graduation run-up.
syful-islam@outlook.com
