The council of advisers today approved the national budget for the fiscal year 2025-2026

Rights activists warn that this rollback threatens to reverse progress and stall efforts toward achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Finance Adviser Salehuddin Ahmed yesterday described the budget for the new fiscal year as “realistic, implementable, and pragmatic”, saying it aims to stabilise the economy.

Say economists about budget

Despite high hopes, the budget did not introduce any new initiatives aimed at improving migrant workers' welfare, standard of living, healthcare, or security

In a historic move, Bangladesh’s national budget has, for the first time, pledged institutional recognition for women’s unpaid and unacknowledged caregiving and household work.

Although the national parliamentary election is slated to be held within June next year, the allocation for the Election Commission (EC) in the proposed budget for fiscal year 2025-26 has been set at Tk 2,956 crore — significantly lower than what was spent in the previous election year.

In the budget for FY26, the government has proposed reducing import duties on certain goods and amending trade rules to enhance competitiveness in preparation for the country’s impending graduation from the list of least developed countries (LDCs).

Despite pledging special attention to education and health, the government has proposed only slight increases in allocations for both sectors in the national budget for fiscal year (FY) 2025–26.

Budget FY26: What does it mean for you?

The budget for FY26 has drawn strong criticism from business leaders who say it lacks a clear roadmap for improving the investment climate, bolstering industrial competitiveness, and implementing overdue reforms in the banking sector.

High inflation has become the bane of low-income people’s existence for the better part of the past two years as spiralling prices have dramatically eaten away at their purchasing power.

A glimpse of the actual expenditure:

Home and commercial space buyers are expected to face higher costs as the government seeks to hike value-added tax on the services provided by construction firms. The VAT rate will be 10 percent in FY26, up from 7.5 percent during this outgoing fiscal year. Besides, an increase in specific VAT on rods is expected to fuel construction costs.

Annual income and tax rate

One of the main targets of this government is the recovery of stolen assets, or assets that have been pilfered abroad through capital flight.

The proposed budget seeks to increase the youth loan ceiling to Tk 2 lakh for trained individuals and Tk 5 lakh for successful entrepreneurs and also allocate Tk 100 crore fund for youths, as part of the interim government’s efforts to address youth unemployment.

Tax rates on income will remain the same as in fiscal 2024-25

Finance Adviser Salehuddin Ahmed has offered both empathy and arithmetic in his budget speech, laying out a vision that puts people, not just projects, at the heart of economic policy.

Ministry-wise Budget allocation for FY26 in crore taka