Canada extends duty-free access for Bangladesh till 2034

28 Aug '23

1 min read

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Bangladesh will continue to enjoy duty-free access to Canada from 2026 till 2034 as the latter has extended duty-free market access to developing countries, and that will benefit Bangladesh once it graduates from the least developed country status.
The market access under the General Preferential Tariff scheme also includes relaxed rules of origin of apparel items.

A bill passed in the Canadian parliament in June allows Bangladesh to continue to enjoy duty-free access to the former’s market from 2026 till 2034. The Canadian government has extended duty-free market access to all developing countries, and that will benefit Bangladesh once it graduates from the least developed country (LDC) status in 2026.

This will make Canada the third country after the United Kingdom and Australia where Bangladesh can retain the preferential trade treatment after 2026, according to Bangladesh media reports.

The market access under the General Preferential Tariff (GPT) scheme also includes relaxed rules of origin of apparel items and provides duty-free access to other products. Labour and environmental compliance of industries are also essential criteria.

The current scheme is going to expire at the end of 2024 and Canada is expected to come up with a GPT Plus scheme from January 1, 2025.

Canada was the 11th largest exporting partner of Bangladesh with exports worth $1.72 billion in fiscal 2022-23, according to the Bangladesh’s Export Promotion Bureau data.

Bangladesh's garment exports to Canada reached $1.55 billion in FY23 and $1.33 billion the previous fiscal—a 16.55 per cent growth.

ALCHEMPro News Desk (DS)

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