Black money whitening provision dropped as govt approves Tk7.90 lakh crore FY26 budget

The interim government's Advisory Council today (22 June) approved the national budget of Tk7.90 lakh crore for the 2025–26 fiscal year, making only minor adjustments to the proposal placed earlier this month.

Notably, the provision allowing black money to be legalised through investment in flats and buildings has been scrapped.

The budget was finalised at a meeting chaired by Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus. It will come into effect on 1 July.

With no functioning parliament, the budget has moved forward without the usual debates and voting process.

The government has set a target of 5.5% GDP growth for the next fiscal year.

To meet the budget deficit of Tk2.26 lakh crore, it plans to borrow Tk1.25 lakh crore from domestic sources and Tk1.1 lakh crore from foreign sources.

In the current fiscal year's original budget, Tk7.97 lakh crore was allocated across 62 ministries and divisions.

In the revised budget, allocations for 10 ministries and divisions increased by Tk1.3 lakh crore, while those for the remaining 52 have either been reduced or left unchanged.

Next fiscal's proposed budget, placed by Finance Adviser Salehuddin Ahmed on 2 June, marked the first time in Bangladesh's history that the overall budget size was reduced in absolute terms, set at Tk7.90 lakh crore — 0.9% lower than the previous fiscal year's Tk7.97 lakh crore outlay.

The Finance Division published the draft on its website and invited public opinions. A few business chambers and associations gave feedback through meetings or press conferences.