BIDA registration records your investment project with Bangladesh's investment authority, so you can use its incentives and services: work permits, visa recommendations and import approvals. You apply online through the One Stop Service (OSS) portal. The published fee is Tk 5,000 to Tk 1,00,000 plus 15% VAT, depending on project investment, and the published service time is one day once your documents are complete. Since August 2026 BIDA has been part of a new agency, Invest Bangladesh.
BIDA is now Invest Bangladesh
BIDA is the Bangladesh Investment Development Authority. In July 2026 Parliament passed the Invest Bangladesh Bill, 2026. It merges BIDA, the Bangladesh Economic Zones Authority (BEZA) and the Public Private Partnership Authority into one agency, Invest Bangladesh, under the Prime Minister's Office. It also repeals the BIDA Act, 2016 and the One Stop Service Act, 2018 once it takes effect. Invest Bangladesh started operating in late August 2026.
For you, the work is the same for now. Invest Bangladesh's website lists the same registration services and still sends applicants to the OSS portal at bidaquickserv.org. Most people still say "BIDA registration", so we use both names.
Who registers
According to Invest Bangladesh, these can register:
- Domestic (local) investment projects
- 100% foreign-owned projects
- Joint ventures between local and foreign investors
- Branch, liaison, representative and project offices of foreign companies (a separate approval with its own rules)
Both manufacturing and service businesses can register. Registration is not required for commercial and trading activities. Projects inside export processing zones register with BEPZA instead.
Is it compulsory before a foreigner invests? Bangladesh Bank's Guidelines for Foreign Exchange Transactions (GFET) say sponsors may register to use government facilities. In practice, a foreign or joint-venture company that wants work permits, investor visas or import approvals needs it first.
What it unlocks
Invest Bangladesh says registered businesses can access government incentives, get licences and approvals from it and other regulators, and use its aftercare service. Services you are likely to need next:
- Visa recommendations: E (employees), E1 (installation and inspection work) and P1 (private investors)
- Work permits for foreign staff
- Import permission for capital machinery brought in as equity, and ad-hoc import registration (IRC) recommendations
- Approval for remitting royalty, technical know-how and similar fees
- Approval of foreign loans and supplier's credit
Documents for a foreign or JV project
Invest Bangladesh lists these for a new industrial project registration by a 100% foreign or joint-venture company:
- Certificate of incorporation
- Memorandum and Articles of Association
- Up-to-date trade licence
- Up-to-date TIN certificate
- Purchase or rental deed for the project's office and factory
- Encashment certificate, the bank's proof that the foreign money arrived and was converted to taka
- Form VI and Form XII approved by the Registrar of Joint Stock Companies and Firms (RJSC)
- For a controlled sector under the National Industrial Policy 2022, a no-objection certificate (NOC) from the relevant ministry or department
- Any other supporting documents, and the company's comments as required
The list assumes the company is incorporated and the foreign money has arrived. Without the encashment certificate and RJSC forms, registration cannot start. The order is: incorporate, receive the remittance, get the certificate, then register.
The OSS process
- Open an OSS accountSign up and create the company profile, using the name and address exactly as in RJSC records.
- Fill in the registration formChoose new project registration and enter the project details: industry, investment, equity, investing country, machinery, capacity and staff.
- Upload the documentsNames, addresses and capital figures must match across the MoA, Form XII, trade licence and deed.
- Pay onlineThe fee and 15% VAT are paid through the OSS portal.
- Answer queries and receive the certificateOnce the file is complete, the registration is issued through the portal.
Fees and timelines as published
| Service | Published fee | Published time |
|---|---|---|
| New registration, investment up to Tk 10 crore | Tk 5,000 + 15% VAT | 1 day |
| New registration, Tk 10–25 crore | Tk 10,000 + 15% VAT | 1 day |
| New registration, Tk 25–50 crore | Tk 25,000 + 15% VAT | 1 day |
| New registration, Tk 50–100 crore | Tk 50,000 + 15% VAT | 1 day |
| New registration, above Tk 100 crore | Tk 1,00,000 + 15% VAT | 1 day |
| Amendment of registration | Tk 1,000 + 15% VAT | 3 working days |
| Work permit: new, extension or cancellation | Tk 5,000 per person per year + 15% VAT | 72 hours |
| Visa recommendation (E, E1, P1) | No fee | 24 hours |
Every published time is "subject to submission of necessary documents". The weeks usually go into the steps before: incorporation, the remittance and the encashment certificate.
After registration: keep it current
The registration describes your project at a point in time. When the facts change, you file an amendment on OSS. Invest Bangladesh groups amendments into 14 types. The ones that follow a foreign investment are:
- Investment: board resolution, plus Form 117 for a share transfer or Form XV for a new share allotment
- Equity: board resolution and Form 117
- Nature of investment (joint venture to 100% foreign, or the reverse): board resolution, Schedule X, and Forms 117, XV and XII approved by RJSC
- Investing country: board resolution and Form 117
- Investors' names and addresses: board resolution, Forms 117, XII and XV, and Schedule X
Every amendment needs RJSC filings first, so the order is always RJSC, then Invest Bangladesh. For a project costing Tk 100 million or more, an amendment also needs a project profile. Bangladesh Bank also has to be told about share issues and transfers to non-residents, through your bank, within 14 days. See FDI transaction support for that chain.
Foreign staff: the employer applies for a work permit on OSS within 15 days of the employee's arrival, with a copy of the right visa.
How nirvor helps
We prepare the file so it goes through the first time. We are not a law firm; where a sector question needs a legal opinion, a partner lawyer gives it.
We do
- Check whether your activity needs registration and whether it is a controlled sector that needs an NOC
- Collect the document set and fix mismatches in names, addresses and capital before upload
- Prepare the OSS application data for your authorised person to review and submit
- Track queries until the certificate is issued
- Prepare amendments after each share issue or transfer, in the right order after RJSC
- File the certificate and every amendment in your data room
You provide
- Incorporation certificate, MoA, AoA, Form XII and Form VI
- Trade licence, TIN and the office or factory deed
- The encashment certificate from your bank
- Project facts: investment, machinery, capacity and staff plan
- Board resolutions signed by your directors
- OSS access for your authorised person
You get a fixed fee in writing within 48 hours of a free 30-minute call. Government fees are paid by you, at cost, through OSS.
Frequently asked questions
Is BIDA registration mandatory for a foreign-owned company?
Not as a general rule. Bangladesh Bank's foreign exchange guidelines say no Bangladesh Bank permission is needed to set up a venture with your own funds, and that registration lets you use government facilities. But work permits, investor visas and several import approvals run through it, so most foreign and joint-venture companies register. Commercial and trading businesses are not required to.
How long does BIDA registration take?
The published service time is one day for a new registration and three working days for an amendment, once all documents are submitted. Most of the time goes into what comes before: incorporation, receiving the foreign remittance and getting the encashment certificate.
How much does BIDA registration cost?
The government fee depends on project investment: Tk 5,000 up to Tk 10 crore, rising to Tk 1,00,000 above Tk 100 crore, plus 15% VAT. An amendment is Tk 1,000 plus VAT. Our fee is separate and fixed in writing within 48 hours of a free call.
Do we need to update the registration when a new foreign investor comes in?
Yes. A new allotment or transfer changes the investment, equity and investor details in your registration. File the RJSC forms first, then the amendment on OSS with a board resolution and the approved forms.
Can you get work permits for our foreign staff?
We can prepare the work permit application on OSS once your company is registered. The employer must apply within 15 days of the employee's arrival. The published fee is Tk 5,000 per person per year plus VAT, with a service time of 72 hours.
Sources
- Services for 100% Foreign & Joint Venture Projects (documents, fees, times, amendment clauses, work permits, visas), Invest Bangladesh, checked 3 November 2026.
- Frequently asked questions (who can register, benefits, OSS steps, work permits), Invest Bangladesh, checked 3 November 2026.
- Invest Bangladesh to be formed by unifying BIDA, BEZA and PPPA, press release, 16 July 2026.
- Invest Bangladesh begins journey as apex investment promotion agency, UNB, 23 August 2026.
- Guidelines for Foreign Exchange Transactions (GFET) 2018, Vol. 1, Chapter 9, Bangladesh Bank.
- One Stop Service (OSS) portal.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules, fees and deadlines change, and the move from BIDA to Invest Bangladesh is still under way; check the current list on OSS or ask us before you file.