A person sending money from Australia to Bangladesh states a purpose, and the Authorised Dealer in Bangladesh, meaning the bank licensed to handle foreign exchange, maps it to a reporting code in Bangladesh Bank's published list. The sender does not choose the code. It decides three things: whether the government cash incentive is added at credit, whether a declaration is owed, and whether the money is credited the same business day or held for pre-credit verification.
When you send money from Australia to Bangladesh, you state what the payment is for. The bank in Bangladesh maps that stated purpose to a reporting code published by Bangladesh Bank. The code decides whether a government top-up is added at the moment of credit, whether a declaration is owed, and how fast the money lands.
Key Takeaways
- The sender states a purpose. The Authorised Dealer in Bangladesh assigns the reporting code, from a list Bangladesh Bank publishes.
- That list reports wage remittance in a separate schedule from every other personal receipt, and the split is what the rest follows from.
- The government cash incentive attaches to wage earners' remittance only, is paid at credit, and must be shown separately on the receipt.
- Since 23 May 2022 it needs no documents of any kind from the remitter. The documentary threshold still described in many places was abolished that day.
- Under FEPD-1 Circular No. 03 of 8 January 2026 a clean payment is credited the same business day, and one with inconsistent purpose information goes into pre-credit verification of up to 3 business days.
Who decides the code, and where does the list come from?
The receiving bank decides. An Authorised Dealer is a bank licensed by Bangladesh Bank to handle foreign exchange, and it is the bank at the Bangladeshi end that credits the money. Bangladesh Bank publishes "Code Lists for Reporting of External Sector Transactions by the Authorised Dealers", 2011 edition, through its Foreign Exchange Policy Department. The preface tells Authorised Dealers to "exercise utmost care in inserting correct codes while reporting their foreign exchange transactions to Bangladesh Bank".
Your part is narrower than it looks. You supply a stated purpose; the bank translates it. These are reporting codes, describing what the money is. The codes that route a payment are a separate set, covered in who maintains the codes on a transfer. Four are worth knowing, all in the Invisible Receipts group.
| Code | Purpose | Bangladesh Bank's note |
|---|---|---|
| 5110 | Personal remittances | Savings, pensions, provident fund, crew salaries. "(Wage remittances are excluded; which are reported in FCS-7)" |
| 5121 | Private grants and donations | Gifts, aids, grants and donations, "including personal gifts" |
| 5123 | Receipts from non-resident Bangladeshi | Flats, plots, landed property, industries, securities |
| 71xx | Direct investment | Non-resident direct investment in the reporting economy |
The parenthetical at 5110 carries the weight. Wage remittance is reported in its own schedule, apart from every other personal receipt, and that separation is the mechanism this guide turns on.
Which purpose carries the government cash incentive?
One only: wage earners' remittance. FE Circular No. 31 of 6 August 2019, titled "Policy for providing incentive/cash assistance against sending remittance through legal means", states at paragraph 1 that the assistance applies in the case of Wage Earners' Remittance. The rate is 2.5 per cent, set by FE Circular Letter No. 15 of 23 May 2022 and not since amended.
The bank adds it at credit. Under paragraph 1 the remittance-drawing bank pays the cash assistance when it credits the beneficiary's account or pays the beneficiary. Nobody applies for it. Paragraph 6 requires that where the beneficiary banks elsewhere, the drawing bank sends the incentive with the principal, and that the receipt or SMS shows the government cash assistance amount separately.
Paragraph 1 also requires the funds to arrive through a foreign exchange house or bank operating under a contract with a bank in Bangladesh. That is what the circular's own title means by legal means.
What documents does the incentive need?
None from the remitter, and none since 23 May 2022. Guidance repeating a documentary test is describing a rule that was withdrawn, so the history is worth setting out.
| Period | Documents required | Instrument | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 to 2020 | None up to USD 1,500 per transaction; above that, the remitter's documents lodged at the paying branch | FE Circular No. 31, 6 August 2019 | Superseded |
| 2020 to May 2022 | Above USD 5,000 or BDT 500,000, sent from the overseas exchange house | Recited in FE Circular Letter No. 40, 2 December 2020 | Superseded |
| 23 May 2022 onwards | None, at any amount | FE Circular Letter No. 15, 23 May 2022 | Current |
That 2022 circular letter states the incentive is payable at the existing rate without any documents of any kind from the remitter, in force until further instruction.
Who counts as a wage earner?
The term is defined in the Wage-Earner Development Bond Rules, 1981, made by the Ministry of Finance and amended to 23 May 2015. Rule 2(10) reads:
"'Wage-Earner' means a Bangladesh national gainfully employed abroad but not paid by the Government or a statutory, autonomous or semiautonomous body, and also includes a Bangladesh national who has his origin in Bangladesh but, for any reason, has assumed foreign nationality."
That definition was written for the bond. FE Circular No. 31 uses the phrase without defining it. The exclusion of government and statutory-body pay is confirmed separately, by FE Circular Letter No. 31 of 10 September 2020. That letter extends eligibility to Bangladeshi mariners, pilots and officers serving at the United Nations and at foreign missions. In each case it excludes the Bangladesh government and government-owned institutions.
Freelance earnings sit elsewhere. FEPD-1 Circular No. 22 of 22 July 2026 places money earned by individual service exporters under the export framework of the Foreign Exchange Regulation Act 1947 rather than the wage-earner scheme. Its incentive is an export subsidy applied for separately, not an amount the receiving bank adds at credit.
Is a declaration still owed, and on what?
The threshold survives; the paper form does not. FE Circular No. 03 of 22 February 2023 raised the declaration threshold from USD 10,000 to USD 20,000, amending the Guidelines for Foreign Exchange Transactions 2018. FEPD-1 Circular No. 22 of 22 July 2026 still refers to the USD 20,000 line for service-export receipts.
FEPD-1 Circular No. 03 of 8 January 2026 states at paragraph 07(a) that Form-C and Form-C (ICT) stand discontinued. They are replaced by secure digital customer interfaces in which the repatriated amount, remitter details, purpose of remittance and other particulars the customer supplies are deemed authentic based on that declaration. The circular states a transition period to 31 March 2026.
For an ordinary wage earner sending money home, the declaration never applied at any amount. Paragraph 1 of the February 2023 circular states that no declaration is required for inward remittances sent by Bangladeshi nationals working abroad.
What does an unclear purpose cost in time?
Up to three business days. FEPD-1 Circular No. 03 of 8 January 2026 is titled for streamlining the disposal of inward remittances. It sets the default at paragraph 03(b)(i): a remittance received during banking hours is credited the same business day, and one received after hours the next business day. Paragraph 03(d) lets a bank credit with some documents or checks still pending and finish them in post-credit review without delaying the credit.
The exception is written around the purpose field. Paragraph 03(e)(iii) requires pre-credit verification where there is incomplete, or inconsistent information relating to the stated purpose or the underlying transaction. Those cases are to be settled at the earliest practicable time, not exceeding 3 business days, with daily follow-up. A purpose that agrees with the account, the sender and the amount is credited the same day. One that does not goes into a queue.
Where to look next
- AUD to BDT rate and converter - the corridor page for Australian dollars into Bangladeshi taka.
- Convert AUD to BDT - the same pair, with the amount table.
- Currency converter - a tool for converting an amount between two currencies.
- How international transfers work - the process end to end, including why a transfer can be held or returned.
- Who maintains the codes on a transfer - the codes that route a payment, and who registers them.
Sources
- Bangladesh Bank, Code Lists for Reporting of External Sector Transactions by the Authorised Dealers, 2011: https://www.bb.org.bd/mediaroom/circulars/fepd/codelist.pdf
- Bangladesh Bank, FE Circular No. 31, 6 August 2019: https://www.bb.org.bd/mediaroom/circulars/fepd/aug062019fepd31.pdf
- Bangladesh Bank, FE Circular Letter No. 40, 2 December 2020: https://www.bb.org.bd/mediaroom/circulars/fepd/dec022020fepdl40.pdf
- Bangladesh Bank, FE Circular Letter No. 15, 23 May 2022: https://www.bb.org.bd/mediaroom/circulars/fepd/may222022fepdl15e.pdf
- Bangladesh Bank, FE Circular Letter No. 31, 10 September 2020: https://www.bb.org.bd/mediaroom/circulars/fepd/sep102020fepdl31.pdf
- Bangladesh Bank, FEPD-1 Circular No. 03, 8 January 2026: https://www.bb.org.bd/mediaroom/circulars/fepd/jan082026fepd-103e.pdf
- Bangladesh Bank, FE Circular No. 03, 22 February 2023: https://www.bb.org.bd/mediaroom/circulars/fepd/feb222023fepd03e.pdf
- Bangladesh Bank, FEPD-1 Circular No. 22, 22 July 2026: https://www.bb.org.bd/mediaroom/circulars/fepd/jul222026fepd-122e.pdf
- Ministry of Finance, Wage-Earner Development Bond Rules, 1981: https://www.bb.org.bd/investfacility/wedbr.pdf
General information about sending money to Bangladesh, describing published rules rather than any particular transfer, and not a recommendation of any provider, bank or account. Tradergy is not a money-transfer service, keeps no account and collects no personal data. The rules described here are set by Bangladesh Bank and by statute, and can change. Reviewed by the Tradergy editorial team, September 2026.
Common questions
Who chooses the purpose code on a transfer to Bangladesh?
The receiving bank. Bangladesh Bank publishes the code list, and the Authorised Dealer in Bangladesh assigns the code when it reports the transaction. Its 2011 edition tells Authorised Dealers to exercise utmost care in inserting correct codes. The sender supplies a stated purpose; the bank maps it.
Does the government cash incentive require documents from the sender?
No. FE Circular Letter No. 15 of 23 May 2022 states the incentive is payable at the existing rate without any documents of any kind from the remitter, in force until further instruction. Guidance describing a documentary test above a set amount is describing a withdrawn rule.
Is Form C still used for inward remittances to Bangladesh?
No. FEPD-1 Circular No. 03 of 8 January 2026, paragraph 07(a), states that Form-C and Form-C (ICT) stand discontinued, replaced by secure digital interfaces in which the particulars a customer supplies are deemed authentic based on that declaration. The USD 20,000 threshold survives the form.
Why would a transfer to Bangladesh take up to three business days to credit?
FEPD-1 Circular No. 03 of 8 January 2026 requires pre-credit verification, at paragraph 03(e)(iii), where there is incomplete or inconsistent information relating to the stated purpose or the underlying transaction. Those cases must be settled at the earliest practicable time, not exceeding 3 business days.
Who counts as a wage earner?
The term is defined in the Wage-Earner Development Bond Rules, 1981, rule 2(10), as a Bangladesh national gainfully employed abroad but not paid by the Government or a statutory, autonomous or semiautonomous body, and it also includes a Bangladesh national of Bangladeshi origin who has assumed foreign nationality. That definition is written for the bond.