The Association of Private Universities of Bangladesh (APUB) has expressed deep concern over the lack of a decision to withdraw the existing 10% income tax on private universities in the proposed national budget for the fiscal year 2026-2027. Urging the government to reconsider the tax issue, the association said that the rationale for withdrawing income tax was explained in detail to the relevant policy-making and regulatory authorities before the budget was formulated and positive assurances were received in this regard, but it was not reflected in the budget proposal, a press release said.

The press release on Sunday said that private universities have to pay a significant amount of VAT and taxes for infrastructure and technological development, purchase of laboratory and library equipment and receiving various services. In addition, if the 10% income tax remains in force, on the one hand, the development, expansion and quality improvement activities of universities will be hampered, and on the other hand, additional financial pressure will be created on students, which will increase the cost of higher education. According to the Private Universities Act, 2010, private universities are run as non-profit institutions. In that case, imposing or maintaining income tax on these institutions is not consistent with the policy position of non-profit higher education institutions and raises policy questions in the international arena.

The notification signed by Belal Ahmed, Director of the Association of Private Universities of Bangladesh (APUB) Office, further said that the election manifesto of the current government has mentioned increasing the allocation to the education sector and keeping private universities tax-free. In this case, although 2 percent of the GDP has been allocated to the education sector as a whole, no increase in the allocation to the higher education and research sectors has been observed and the tax imposed on private universities is also in place. Considering the importance of the higher education sector at the private level in the country, it is imperative to implement the promise of making universities tax-free to reduce the additional financial pressure on students, in addition to ensuring allocation to higher education and research. The Association of Private Universities of Bangladesh (APUB) has strongly demanded the Ministry of Education, UGC, Ministry of Finance, NBR and relevant policymakers to withdraw the income tax imposed on private universities, saying, “Investment in the education sector is not an expense; it is one of the major investments in creating skilled human resources, increasing national capacity and building the future of the country.”