MD ASADUZ ZAMAN and SUKANTA HALDER

From the next fiscal year, a 15 percent capital gains tax may apply when selling gold, jewellery, digital currencies, or club memberships.

Finance Minister Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury proposed the measure in the Finance Bill 2026 while presenting the national budget for the fiscal year 2026-27 in parliament on Thursday.

Under the proposal, profits from selling or transferring gold, silver, jewellery, precious stones, diamonds, coins, digital currencies, artworks, antiques, and club memberships declared in a taxpayer’s return will be treated as capital gains and taxed at 15 percent.

Capital gains from securities will also be taxed at 15 percent, including treasury bills, bonds, savings instruments, debentures, sukuk and other shariah-based securities, as well as shares or stocks issued by companies and other entities.

The government has proposed the tax on gold and jewellery at a time when prices have risen sharply in recent years.

Gold was priced at Tk 1.72 lakh per bhori on June 5, 2025. It then rose steadily to Tk 2.24 lakh per bhori on June 13, 2026. Earlier, on January 29 this year, it had reached Tk 2.86 lakh per bhori, the highest level in Bangladesh’s history.

After falling four times in a row, gold prices in the domestic market rose again yesterday, driven by higher international prices of pure gold, prompting the Bangladesh Jewellers Association to adjust local rates.

Yesterday, the price of 22-carat gold increased by Tk 6,590 per bhori, bringing it to Tk 224,940 per bhori.