SIM tax for MNP service goes

The government has waived the tax, amounting to Tk 100, on SIM replacement for the newly-introduced Mobile Number Portability (MNP) service.

A gazette notification to this effect was issued on Monday, following a statutory regulatory order from the National Board of Revenue (NBR).

As a result, the cost of switching cell-phone operator is set to reduce significantly.

Since the launch of MNP service in last October, customers had to pay a total of Tk 157.50 for the service -- Tk 100 as SIM tax, Tk 50 as service charge and 15 per cent VAT.

This cost is now likely to come down to Tk 58 following the tax waiver.

When contacted, telecom industry insiders welcomed the government's latest move.

"Customers will now feel more encouraged to avail this service due to its reduced cost," said Shahed Alam, head of Corporate and Regulatory Affairs of Robi, a leading mobile operator in the country.

"This will indirectly increase the government's revenue collection, while there will be growing competition among the mobile operators to improve their MNP service," he added.

The service enabled the mobile subscribers to switch operator while keeping their numbers unchanged.

A total of 47,090 subscribers applied for availing this service in the first 18 days of launching the scheme, according to data of the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC).

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