Tax VAT Point

VAT & SD Act 2012

Section 38 - Supply of prepaid telecommunications products or services

(as updated till Finance Ordinance 2025)

(1) Where a telecommunications supplier supplies prepaid telecommunications product or service at discount to telecommunications intermediary, the consideration for such supply shall be assessed inclusive of the discount:

Provided that this section shall not apply in relation to a supply of telecommunications product or service by one telecommunications supplier to another telecommunications supplier.

(2) Where a telecommunications intermediary buys and later sells a prepaid telecommunications product‚ such sale shall not be treated as a taxable supply.

(3) Where a telecommunications supplier supplies a prepaid telecommunications product or a service through its agent, the consideration for such supply by the telecommunications supplier shall be assessed inclusive of the commission paid to such agent.

(4) The distribution of a prepaid telecommunications product by a telecommunications supplier or by a telecommunications intermediary acting as an agent of another telecommunications intermediary, shall not be treated as a taxable supply under this Act.

(5) Any telecommunications supplier who supplies prepaid telecommunications product and 1[pays VAT and supplementary duty] in compliance with the provisions of this section may claim a decreasing adjustment‚ if-

(a) the face value, in part or in full, of the product is used to purchase something from a person other than the telecommunications supplier;

(b) any other person-

(i) makes the supply through economic activity carried on in Bangladesh; or

(ii) is registered; and

(c) the telecommunications supplier pays money to other person in respect of the supply.

(6) The amount of the decreasing adjustment shall be equal to the tax-fraction of the amount paid to such other person‚ and the adjustment shall be made in the tax period in which the payment is made.

(7) The Board may frame rules prescribing the evidence of right to and method of claiming input tax credit for a person who uses prepaid telecommunications product or service.

Explanations: In this section‚-

(a) “prepaid telecommunications product” means a phone card, prepaid card, recharge card, or prepayment for acquisition of telecommunications goods by other means, or airtime for telecommunications services, in whichever form or by whatever name called, including internet access time, or download capacity;

(b) “telecommunications intermediary” means a person who acts as a distributor, representative, VAT agent, or an intermediary in relation to a prepaid telecommunications product;

(c) “telecommunications supplier” means a supplier of telecommunications services, but does not include a telecommunications intermediary; and

(d) “telecommunications service” means a service relating to transmission, emission, or reception of signals of writings, projection of images, sounds, or information of a similar kind by wire, radio, optical, or other similar electromagnetic or electronic signalling system,–

and the following materials also be included in it, namely:-

(i) such transfer or assignment service of the right to use capacity for such transmission, emission, or reception of signals; and

(ii) the service containing the provision of access to global or local information networks;

but does not include the service of supply of underlying writings, images, sounds, or information.

1  The words “pays VAT” were substituted by section 62 of the Finance Act, 2022 (Act No. 13 of 2022) with effect from 01 July 2022.

Disclaimer: This is the authentic English text of The Value Added Tax and Supplementary Duty Act 2012, as published under SRO No. 440-Law/2025/326-Mushak dated 05 November 2025. In the event of any inconsistency or conflict between the content on this website and the official Government publications or gazette notifications relating to laws, rules, regulations or SROs, the official Government publications and notifications shall prevail.

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