Dhaka: The government has increased the regulatory duty on rice import to 25 percent from the existing 3 percent, aiming to discourage its import following a drastic fall in rice prices in the country.

The National Board of Revenue (NBR) issued a circular in this regard on Wednesday with immediate effect.

Besides, the circular said, the importers have to pay five percent Advance Income Tax on rice import, reports the UNB. 

Now, rice importers have to count a total of 55 percent tax and duty.

NBR Chairman Md Mosharraf Hossain Bhuiyan said 3.3 lakh metric tonnes of rice were imported in 10 months of the 2018-19 fiscal year.

As a result, he said, the country’s farmers are being forced to sell their rice at a price lower than their production cost. 

The decision to raise the import tax and duty has been taken considering the huge losses being incurred by farmers, he said.