An expatriate employee’s Bangladeshi tax rate turns on one number: days spent in the country. A foreign national who is not resident pays a flat 30% on Bangladeshi income, with no tax-free threshold and no slabs. A foreign national who becomes resident moves onto the same graduated rates as a Bangladeshi taxpayer, starting at nil.
On a BDT 3 million package, that difference is worth BDT 360,000 a year.
Residence is not a status you elect. It’s counted in days, recalculated every tax year, and it can change mid-assignment. We advise foreign employers on the day count before the assignment starts, as part of expatriate and work permit services, and the filings that follow sit inside the NBR compliance cycle.
The day count that decides everything
An individual is resident in Bangladesh for a tax year if either test is met.
- 183 days or more in Bangladesh during the tax year, continuously or in aggregate
- 90 days or more in the tax year, plus 365 days or more across the 4 immediately preceding years
The tax year runs 1 July to 30 June. Residential status is determined separately for each year, so an expatriate can be non-resident in year 1 and resident in year 2 on an unchanged contract.
The second test catches people. A regional manager who spends 3 months a year in Dhaka is not obviously a Bangladeshi taxpayer, but after 4 years of that pattern the cumulative 365 days arrives and the 90-day test starts biting.
Count the days from arrival, and keep the record. Immigration stamps are the evidence, and reconstructing 4 years of travel from memory at assessment is not a position you want to be in.
What a non-resident expatriate pays
A non-resident who is not a Bangladeshi citizen is taxed at the maximum rate, 30% flat.
There’s no tax-free threshold and no benefit from the lower bands. The first taka is taxed at the same rate as the last.
Scope is narrower in exchange. A non-resident is taxed only on income that accrues, arises or is deemed to accrue or arise in Bangladesh, or that is received or deemed received in Bangladesh. Income earned and received outside Bangladesh stays outside the net.
Non-resident Bangladeshi citizens are treated differently. They get the graduated rates below, not the flat 30%.
What a resident expatriate pays
Residents are taxed on Bangladeshi income and on foreign income that is accrued, arisen or received in the same year. The rates for FY 2025-26 and FY 2026-27:
| Total income (BDT) | Tax rate |
|---|---|
| Up to the tax-free threshold | Nil |
| Next 300,000 | 10% |
| Next 400,000 | 15% |
| Next 500,000 | 20% |
| Next 2,000,000 | 25% |
| On the rest | 30% |
The threshold for a general taxpayer is BDT 400,000. It’s BDT 450,000 for women and for taxpayers aged 65 or over, BDT 525,000 for persons with physical challenges, and BDT 525,000 for third-gender taxpayers.
A minimum tax applies once total income passes the threshold: BDT 5,000, or BDT 1,000 for a new taxpayer.
A surcharge sits on top for high net worth. Net wealth above BDT 40 million, or ownership of more than 1 motor car, or house property over 8,000 sq ft, triggers 10% of tax payable, rising through 20%, 30% and 35% as net wealth passes BDT 100 million, BDT 200 million and BDT 500 million.
The same salary, taxed 2 ways
Take an expatriate on BDT 3,000,000 of Bangladeshi income in FY 2026-27.
| Status | Calculation | Tax |
|---|---|---|
| Non-resident, not a Bangladeshi citizen | 30% of 3,000,000 | BDT 900,000 |
| Resident | Nil on 400,000, then 30,000 + 60,000 + 100,000 + 350,000 | BDT 540,000 |
The resident pays an effective 18% against the non-resident’s 30%. Same salary, same job, BDT 360,000 apart.
This is why assignment length is a tax decision, not only an HR one. An assignment structured at 170 days for operational reasons carries a cost that nobody prices at the planning stage.
Rates change from FY 2027-28
2 things move, and both are worth building into a multi-year assignment budget now.
The general threshold rises to BDT 450,000 for FY 2027-28 and FY 2028-29, then to BDT 500,000 for FY 2029-30.
A 35% band also appears from FY 2027-28, applying above roughly BDT 26 million of total income. Senior expatriate packages that currently top out at 30% will cross into it.
When the return is due, and how to earn 5% back
Individual returns can be filed at any point in the tax year, and the date you choose changes the bill.
| Filing period | Effect |
|---|---|
| 1 July to 30 September | Rebate of 5% of tax liability, capped at BDT 25,000 |
| 1 October to 31 December | No rebate, no additional tax |
| 1 January to 31 March | Additional tax of 2%, minimum BDT 3,000 |
| 1 April to 30 June | Additional tax of 5%, minimum BDT 5,000 |
A first-time filer has until 30 June following the end of the income year.
Miss the window entirely and the return becomes a delayed return, costing 10% of tax payable or BDT 5,000, whichever is higher, and 15% or BDT 10,000 once a reassessment notice expires.
One detail sinks a lot of filings. A return submitted without the statement of assets and liabilities and the statement of living expenses is treated as incomplete. It isn’t a late return, it’s an unfiled one.
Advance tax applies where the last assessed income exceeded BDT 1 million, in 4 instalments of 25% each, due 15 September, 15 December, 15 March and 15 June. Those dates and the rest of the year sit in the FY 2026-27 compliance calendar.
e-Filing became mandatory on 28 June 2026, with an exemption that may cover you
The NBR now requires individual taxpayers to file through its portal at etaxnbr.gov.bd. Registration needs a Tax Identification Number and a biometric-verified mobile number.
The mandate does not apply to foreign nationals working in Bangladesh. It also excludes taxpayers aged 65 or over, taxpayers with certified disabilities, Bangladeshi taxpayers residing abroad, and legal representatives filing for a deceased taxpayer. All of them can still choose to e-file.
The biometric mobile verification is the practical reason the exemption exists. An expatriate without a locally registered SIM in their own name can’t complete portal registration, and the exemption means they don’t have to.
What the employer has to do
Bangladeshi tax on salary is collected at source. The employer deducts, deposits and reports, and liability for getting it wrong sits with the employer rather than the employee. The schedule is in salary deduction at source.
Watch one enforcement priority in particular. The tax authorities are actively mapping the salary stated on a work permit against the amount actually paid to the individual.
That matters for the common arrangement where part of an expatriate’s package is paid by the home entity and part locally. If the work permit shows one figure and Bangladeshi payroll shows another, expect the question. Get the 2 numbers reconciled before the filing, not during an audit.
4 mistakes we see with expatriate assignments
1. Treating residence as a choice
It’s arithmetic on days, recalculated annually. An employee can be non-resident one year and resident the next without any change to the contract or the role.
2. Ignoring the 90-day plus 365-day test
Short repeat visits look safe individually. Across 4 years they accumulate, and residence arrives without anyone crossing 183 days in a single year.
3. Filing without the asset and liability statement
The return is incomplete without it, whatever date it went in. The rebate is lost and the clock keeps running.
4. Splitting the package without reconciling the work permit
Home-country and local payments are both visible to someone. The work permit figure is the reference point the tax authorities are now checking against.
Getting an assignment structured before it starts
We model the day count, the residence outcome and the effective rate before an expatriate arrives, then run the payroll withholding and the annual return through the Khan Akber Workforce Compliance Framework so the work permit figure and the payroll figure agree from month 1.
For an assignment already running, or one being planned, talk to our team.
Rates and thresholds reflect the Income Tax Act 2023 as applied for FY 2025-26 and FY 2026-27, with later-year figures as currently legislated. Tax law changes with each Finance Act. Confirm your position with a qualified adviser before filing.
Frequently asked questions
How are expatriate employees taxed in Bangladesh?
It depends on residence. A non-resident foreign national pays a flat 30% on Bangladeshi income, with no tax-free threshold and no lower bands. A resident pays graduated rates running from nil to 30%, with a BDT 400,000 tax-free threshold for a general taxpayer.
When does a foreign employee become a tax resident in Bangladesh?
After 183 days or more in Bangladesh during the tax year, counted continuously or in aggregate. Residence also arises on 90 days or more in the current year combined with 365 days or more across the 4 immediately preceding years. It is recalculated annually.
Do expatriates in Bangladesh have to use the NBR e-filing portal?
No. Foreign nationals working in Bangladesh are exempt from the NBR e-filing mandate that took effect on 28 June 2026. They may still file through etaxnbr.gov.bd voluntarily, which requires a Tax Identification Number and a biometric-verified Bangladeshi mobile number in their own name.
Is foreign income taxable for an expatriate in Bangladesh?
For a resident, yes, where the foreign income is accrued, arisen or received in the same tax year. For a non-resident, no. Only income accruing, arising or received in Bangladesh, or deemed to be, falls inside the Bangladeshi tax net.
What happens if an expatriate files a Bangladeshi tax return late?
Filing between 1 January and 31 March adds 2% of tax payable, minimum BDT 3,000. Between 1 April and 30 June it adds 5%, minimum BDT 5,000. After that the return counts as delayed, costing 10% of tax payable or BDT 5,000.
