The national parliament (Jatiya Sangsad) is expected to take up for consideration in its next session an amendment to the forex law that would help the authorities track the overseas assets of Bangladeshis or foreigners living in Bangladesh.
Officials said the proposed 'Foreign Exchange Regulation (Amendment) Act 2015' was now being readied for its placement in the House.
The cabinet on May 11 last approved in principle the draft of the amendment to the foreign-exchange law for effectively regulating the purchase and sale of foreign currencies and securities.
Following the cabinet nod, the proposed amendment was sent to the parliamentary standing committee on the ministry of finance (MoF) for its observations and suggestions.
The parliamentary panel is likely to give its final opinion on the proposed foreign-exchange-regulation law this month, a high official of the ministry concerned said.
"We have sent the draft law to the parliamentary standing committee on the MoF for their suggestions/observations. They will sit for discussion on it on August 26," a high official of the MoF, who is involved in the process, told the FE Thursday. He said the proposed law will go to the parliament for enactment after the committee completes their observations and suggestions, if any.
The proposed law vests authority in government to ask any Bangladesh national or foreigner residing in this country to furnish information about their foreign exchange or securities and immoveable or other sorts of property abroad.
The amendment proposes waiving the existing mandatory provision of taking Bangladesh Bank's (BB) prior permission in the case of licensing a foreign-exchange agency and opening a branch or liaison office of any foreign organisation.
In the changed process, the Board of Investment (BoI) will issue the permission, and the BB will be informed in this regard within 30 days so that the central bank can monitor the transaction in foreign exchange and securities of the organisation concerned.
The 'Foreign Exchange Regulation Act 1947', which was amended in 1976 and 2003, now regulates the purchase and sale of foreign currencies and bullion (gold and other precious metal bar).
The government is going to amend the existing law to make it time-befitting in view of the fact that size of transaction of foreign exchange has expanded to a large extent as a result of expansion of foreign investment and volume of international trade, the official said.
A committee headed by an Executive Director of Bangladesh Bank prepared the amendment reviewing the existing laws of other countries, particularly of neighbouring ones.
The amendment also proposes empowering the BB to impose fines against the foreign-exchange dealers in case of violation of the law.
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