Getting and renewing a trade licence

The trade licence is the first document a shop needs and the one everything else asks for — a bank account, a BIN, a supplier’s credit terms. Which office issues it depends on where the shop is, not on what it sells.

What you usually need

• A filled application form from the local authority office or its website.
• Your National ID, and passport-size photographs.
• Proof of the premises — the rent agreement, or the holding tax receipt if you own it.
• Your e-TIN certificate.
• The fee, which varies by the kind of business and where it is.

Some trades need a further clearance before the licence is issued — food and restaurants, pharmacies, anything handling chemicals. Ask at the counter which applies to your trade; it is cheaper than finding out at renewal.

Renewal

A trade licence runs for a financial year and is renewed annually. Renewing late attracts a surcharge, and letting it lapse entirely can mean applying afresh rather than renewing — the same money, more queueing.

Put the renewal date in your phone the day you get the licence. It is the single most commonly missed deadline in a small shop, and the only one that is entirely avoidable.

Fees, forms and the exact document list differ between City Corporations and between a Pourashava and a Union Parishad. Treat the list above as what to bring, and the office you are registering with as the authority on what it costs.

This is a plain-language guide, not tax advice. VAT rates, thresholds and forms change with each year’s Finance Act. Confirm anything that affects what you pay with NBR (nbr.gov.bd), your local VAT office, or a VAT consultant before you act on it.