[🇧🇩] Budget for 2025- 2026

[Saif]

Revised budget warrants a balancing act

The mid-year budget revision for fiscal year 2025-26 has placed the interim government in an undeniably difficult position. On the one side lies a formidable financial crunch; on the other, persistent demands from ministries and agencies for the full release of their allocated funds. Reconciling th

thefinancialexpress.com.bd

Revised budget warrants a balancing act

Published :
Dec 04, 2025 23:01
Updated :
Dec 04, 2025 23:02

The mid-year budget revision for fiscal year 2025-26 has placed the interim government in an undeniably difficult position. On the one side lies a formidable financial crunch; on the other, persistent demands from ministries and agencies for the full release of their allocated funds. Reconciling these opposing pressures will require not only a meticulous recalibration of the budget but also prudent execution for the remainder of the fiscal year. While this is a reality the finance division has to encounter every year, the situation this year is more difficult as it involves a cautious balancing of critical factors.

No doubt, the current situation serves as a timely reminder for ministries and divisions to prepare realistic funding requests in the revised budget so that the government can limit excessive bank borrowing and its associated interest burden. The Finance Division has reportedly begun consultations with relevant agencies, issuing cautionary guidance to help streamline spending in line with revenue realities. Yet reports indicate that certain ministries insist they will require their entire operating budgets, despite clear signs of fiscal stress. The finance authorities, noting the slower-than-expected revenue flow earlier in the year, have urged ministries to strictly adhere to austerity directives.

A report in this newspaper underlines, citing senior finance ministry officials, the gravity of the situation: nearly one-fifth of the government's annual operating expenditure goes towards paying interest on domestic loans. Debt-servicing obligations have risen steadily, and for the current fiscal year alone, Tk 1.0 trillion has been allocated for interest payments on domestic borrowing. Against this backdrop, the need for realistic, carefully justified fund demands cannot be overstated. The government's cautious tone also reflects its immediate spending commitments-several of which are unavoidable. Approximately Tk 30 billion will be required to conduct the forthcoming national elections. In addition, the recent decision to raise house-rent allowances for MPO-listed teachers is expected to add another Tk 40 billion to the expenditure burden. Furthermore, the government has pledged around Tk 200 billion to capitalise the newly established United Islamic Bank, created to stabilise five distressed Islamic banks. These commitments, though necessary, will significantly strain public finances, requiring higher borrowings from the banking and treasury systems unless offset elsewhere.

Given the scale of these pressures, revenue mobilisation emerges as the pivotal determinant of fiscal stability. Encouragingly, according to the National Board of Revenue (NBR) sources, revenue collection has gained momentum, posting over 15 per cent growth during the July-October period. If this upward trend continues, the government's reliance on bank borrowing for deficit financing could ease somewhat. Even so, the road ahead remains challenging. Austerity can help contain spending but cannot, on its own, bridge the fiscal gap. Ultimately, the government's ability to navigate the remainder of the year will depend heavily on how effectively it can mobilise domestic revenue-especially tax revenue-while enforcing disciplined expenditure across ministries. In this delicate balancing act, prudent financial stewardship will be crucial to maintaining stability amid tightening fiscal constraints.​

 

[Saif]

https://thefinancialexpress.com.bd/economy/revised-budget-new-ones-outline-going-for-cas-perusal-today

Revised budget, new one's outline going for CA's perusal today
An upscale Tk8.5t budget for FY27 likely

Syful Islam
Published :
Dec 22, 2025 00:25
Updated :
Dec 22, 2025 00:25

A pared-down draft revised budget for the current fiscal year and an outline of the next one are being placed before Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus today to seek his advice and directions, officials say.

An upscale Tk 8.5-trillion budget for next fiscal year is likely to be framed by the interim government and left to the upcoming elected one for execution, sources say as the budgeting process gets going.

Finance Adviser Dr Salehuddin Ahmed, central bank governor Dr Ahsan H Mansur, finance secretary Dr Khairuzzaman Mozumder and officials from the budget wing of the ministry will attend the consultative programme on budgeting at his crucial time in the aftermath of regime change through uprising.

Officials say the finance division will need up to January-end to finalise the revised budget for the fiscal year 2025-26.

An initial estimation of the revised operating budget now stands at Tk 5.20 trillion in a climb-down from Tk 5.35 trillion earmarked in the actual budget.

However, officials say, the revision of spending for the current Annual Development Programme (ADP) has yet to be completed -- this is here where major reckonings and pruning are to take place in the wake of belt-tightening by the interim government.

A senior finance official told The Financial Express that there was little chance to drastically cut the current budget of Tk 7.90 trillion since the outlay itself is smaller than the previous one of Tk 7.97 trillion.

He estimates that once finalised, the revised budget for the current fiscal year may stand between Tk 7.8 trillion and Tk 7.85 trillion.

Finance Division officials also say usually they place revised budget and new budget outlines to the Prime Minister or Chief Adviser in mid-May, making it almost final, and seeking his/her last-minute advice.

However, since the interim-government would not be in office next May, and scheduled to leave by mid-February following a fresh general election, the finance officials decide to apprise the head of stand-in government of present state of budget docs much earlier than the usual practice.

Speaking about unforeseen financial obligations, a senior Finance Division official says the government has already paid Tk 200 billion to newly formed five-in-one Sammilito Islamic Bank and an additional some Tk 40 billion will be needed to pay enhanced house-rent allowances for the MPO-listed teachers.

"The two new allocations will put pressure on the size of the budget but won't exceed the actual size," he says.

Sources have said while presenting an outline of the upcoming budget, the officials may seek Chief Adviser's nod to go forward with a plan to prepare a Tk 8.5-trillion outlay for the new fiscal year.

The GDP (gross domestic product)-growth target for the next fiscal year is estimated at 6.0 per cent and they set a target to keep inflation at around 6.0 per cent.

"These estimations are at a very preliminary stage and will be finalised once the new government takes office," says another finance official, on the cusp transition through the set February-12th polls.​

 

[Saif]

Revised budget targets record-low deficit

The revised budget for the current fiscal year could see the deficit fall to a record low of 3.3 percent of GDP due mainly to ambitious revenue collection targets and cuts in development spending.

www.thedailystar.net

Revised budget targets record-low deficit

The revised budget for the current fiscal year could see the deficit fall to a record low of 3.3 percent of GDP due mainly to ambitious revenue collection targets and cuts in development spending.

The finance ministry presented the plan on Monday at a high-level meeting with Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus.

Finance ministry officials said the revised budget is likely to be placed before the Advisory Council meeting this week for approval. The government will publish it once the council approves it.

Usually, the new budget for the next fiscal year and the revised budget for the outgoing year are announced in June.

This time, the interim government is finalising the revised budget earlier because the national election is scheduled for February next year, a finance ministry official said.

The government generally aims to keep the budget deficit within 5 percent of GDP. Although after actual implementation, the deficit tends to decrease further.

During the last years of the previous Awami League government, original budget deficits exceeded 6 percent of GDP. As a result, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) set limits on the deficit to maintain fiscal discipline when it began its loan programme in January 2023.

In its first budget, the interim government fixed the deficit target at 3.6 percent for the current fiscal year 2025-26. In the previous fiscal year, the actual deficit also stood at 3.6 percent of GDP, mainly because development spending fell short of the allocation.

Breaking with usual practice, the revised budget now reduces the deficit further. Because revenue collection is projected to grow by around 35 percent, while the annual development programme (ADP) is being cut by 13 percent from the original allocation.

The overall deficit is being reduced by Tk 26,000 crore to Tk 2 lakh crore. Domestic borrowing will rise from Tk 1.25 lakh crore to Tk 1.39 lakh crore, while foreign financing falls from Tk 1.01 lakh crore to Tk 61,000 crore.

Revenue targets have been increased by 5 percent, or Tk 24,000 crore, to Tk 5.88 lakh crore from the original Tk 5.64 lakh crore, a finance ministry official told The Daily Star on condition of anonymity.

Revenue authorities usually miss their initial targets, forcing the government to lower them near the end of the fiscal year. Even then, reduced targets are often missed, largely due to sluggish performance by the National Board of Revenue (NBR), which accounts for about 90 percent of state revenue.

Under the revised plan, non-NBR tax targets have been increased to Tk 20,000 crore from Tk 19,000 crore. Non-tax revenue has been raised to Tk 65,000 crore from Tk 46,000 crore.

The NBR has increased its target to Tk 5.03 lakh crore, up from Tk 5.02 lakh crore.

An NBR official said collections from customs, income tax and value-added tax (VAT) rose notably in the first quarter, prompting the revision.

In the first five months of FY26, NBR's revenue grew by 15 percent, compared with just 1.9 percent growth last year, said the official.

A senior NBR official cited seven factors behind the revised target's achievability.

Chief among them is the mandatory online submission of individual tax returns. The e-return system also allows automated data collection from institutions through API links, enabling different databases to share information directly with the NBR.

Banks, employers, government agencies and utility service providers can transmit taxpayer information straight to the tax authority's server, which officials expect will curb evasion and boost compliance.

The NBR has also launched a medium and long-term revenue strategy. To raise VAT receipts, the enlistment threshold has been cut from Tk 50 lakh to Tk 30 lakh, and the registration threshold from Tk 3 crore to Tk 50 lakh. VAT on many items has been standardised at 15 percent.

Another important reform is the split of the NBR into the Revenue Policy Division and the Revenue Administration Division through an ordinance.

The government has also adopted a Tax Expenditure Policy and Management Framework to rationalise exemptions and strengthen control over tax spending.

Finance ministry officials said the overall budget for the current fiscal year may be trimmed by Tk 2,000 crore to Tk 7.88 lakh crore. The annual development programme is also likely to be cut by Tk 30,000 crore to Tk 2 lakh crore.​