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Bangladesh Bank has allowed passengers to purchase tickets for foreign airlines operating in Bangladesh directly with international credit and debit cards, offering an alternative to traditional banking channels and travel agencies.
The central bank’s Foreign Exchange Policy Department (FEPD-1) issued a circular on Monday and sent it to all authorised dealer (AD) banks.
Under the new directive, Bangladeshi citizens holding valid visas can use international cards to purchase tickets from foreign airlines operating in Bangladesh, according to the circular.
The facility also applies to foreign airlines whose ticket sales are settled outside Bangladesh through international acquiring and payment-settlement systems.
Bangladesh Bank said such ticket purchases will not be counted against a cardholder’s fixed annual travel quota. However, issuing banks may verify the authenticity of the transactions when replenishing or adjusting the customer’s card limit.
Banks have been instructed to identify such transactions using the specific Merchant Category Code (MCC) assigned to the respective airlines.
The central bank clarified that the facility will not cover tickets of domestic Bangladeshi airlines purchased through foreign platforms operating outside Bangladesh.
It also said foreign currency generated from ticket sales must be calculated and adjusted as remittable surplus under existing regulations when funds are sent to the airline’s home country.
Banks will also have to regularly report details of such transactions through Bangladesh Bank’s Transaction Monitoring (TM) module.
The circular, signed by BB Director (FEPD-1) Dr Md Abu Bakkar Siddique, took effect immediately.