Although it has made significant reforms in the past few years, Bangladesh remains one of the most restrictive trade regimes in Asia and gets a major portion of its current revenue from import duties and excise taxes. In 1999, tariff reform was accelerated by the compression of customs duty rates into a range of 0–37.5%, including a variety of products from raw materials to finished products. There is also a 2.5% infrastructure development surcharge on nearly all imports. Customs procedures are lengthy and burdensome and Bangladesh's list of prohibited imports is lengthy.
There are three export processing zones; one in Chittagong, one in Dakha, and one in Gazipur; three more are under construction in Comilla, Issardi, and Mongla. Bangladesh is a member of the South Asia Preferential Trade Agreement (SAPTA).