NBR waives airfare excise duty, VAT for hajj pilgrims

The National Board of Revenue (NBR) has waived the excise duty on inbound and outbound airfare for hajj pilgrims, as well as the value-added tax (VAT) on three types of service charges, aiming to lower their overall expenses of hajj.

Currently, the excise duty for a single trip's air ticket is Tk2,000 from Bangladesh to Saudi Arabia, resulting in a total of Tk4,000 for a pilgrim for a two-way ticket. Additionally, the existing 15% fees for embarkation, passenger security, and airport security have also been waived.

According to a press release from the revenue authority today (4 November), "Costs for hajj pilgrims were increasing due to rising airfares and other factors. To make hajj expenses more affordable, excise duty and VAT in three categories have been withdrawn."

A senior NBR official told The Business Standard that, "In response to a request from the Ministry of Religious Affairs to exempt VAT and excise duty, the NBR issued the statutory regulatory order [SRO]."

In 2023, the hajj pilgrim quota for Bangladesh was over 1.27 lakh, However, due to excessive expense increase, the quota didn't fulfill, according to the related ministry.

However, the interim government recently announced the hajj cost which is significantly lower than the previous year's cost. 

Earlier on 30 October, it was announced that Bangladeshi pilgrims will be able to perform the hajj in 2025 for Tk1,00,598 less than what they needed to pay in 2024 under government arrangement.

Private hajj operators will also offer a package at a significantly lower cost — Tk4,83,156 — for 2025, down from Tk5,89,800 a year ago.

Religious Affairs Adviser AFM Khalid Hossain announced the hajj package 2025.