Prime Minister Tarique Rahman on Monday proposed exempting the salary, agricultural and business income of ethnic minorities across Bangladesh from income tax, extending the existing tax benefit beyond the hill districts to include communities living in the plains.
He made the proposal while taking part in the general discussion on the FY2026-27 budget during the 18th sitting of the second and first budget session of the 13th National Parliament. The sitting was presided over by Speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmed, Bir Bikram.
The prime minister said the current proposal for tax exemption covers only certain categories of income earned by ethnic communities in the hill districts and should be broadened.
"At present, there is a proposal to exempt certain categories of income earned by small ethnic communities in the hill districts from tax. This should be expanded so that the business, agricultural and salary income of all small ethnic communities living in both the hills and the plains are also exempted from tax," he said.
Tarique said ethnic minority communities also live in various parts of the country, including Dinajpur, Mymensingh and Netrakona, and therefore the tax benefit should not remain limited to the hill districts.
The proposal came during the general discussion on the FY2026-27 budget in parliament.
