If you were shopping for a car in June and stepped away for a month, the market you came back to is different. The Finance Act 2026 took effect on 1 July 2026, raising supplementary duty on petrol and diesel cars above 1,200cc while expanding exemptions for hybrids and electric vehicles. The result: some of Bangladesh's most popular models now cost Tk 2.5–3 lakh more than they did eight weeks ago — and a few actually got cheaper.
Key takeaways
- Petrol cars in the 1,200–1,600cc band took the biggest hit. That's the petrol Axio, Fielder, Yaris, and Premio — the exact models middle-class buyers prefer. Expect roughly Tk 2.5–3 lakh added to landed cost.
- Hybrids were spared — and then some. The final Finance Act expanded hybrid exemptions beyond what the June proposal suggested. Prius, Aqua, Axio Hybrid, Yaris Cross, Sienta, Vezel, and Note e-Power prices are broadly stable.
- The petrol-vs-hybrid gap collapsed. An Axio Hybrid cost ~Tk 5 lakh more than the petrol Axio in June; today the difference is closer to Tk 2 lakh.
- The Nissan Leaf is the quiet winner. EV duty concessions mean the only mainstream electric car in the reconditioned market got cheaper while everything petrol went up.
- If you're buying petrol, the cars already cleared before 1 July are the last of the old prices. Once that stock sells, every new arrival carries the new duty.
The table: June vs. August, 10 models
Estimated prices for typical reconditioned units (2021–2022 models, auction grade 4 or better) landed and cleared, excluding registration. The two petrol rows show what the duty change did; the hybrid rows show what it spared.
| Model (typical import spec) |
June 2026 (est.) |
August 2026 (est.) |
Change |
Why |
| Toyota Corolla Axio 1.5 (petrol) |
Tk 27–32 lakh |
Tk 30–35 lakh |
▲ ~Tk 2.5–3 lakh |
ICE SD increase (1,200–1,600cc) |
| Toyota Yaris 1.5 (petrol) |
Tk 26–30 lakh |
Tk 28.5–33 lakh |
▲ ~Tk 2.5–3 lakh |
ICE SD increase |
| Toyota Corolla Axio Hybrid |
Tk 32–37 lakh |
Tk 32–37 lakh |
▶ Stable |
Hybrid exemptions expanded |
| Toyota Prius (hybrid) |
Tk 38–45 lakh |
Tk 38–45 lakh |
▶ Stable |
Hybrid exemptions expanded |
| Toyota Aqua (hybrid) |
Tk 22–27 lakh |
Tk 22–27 lakh |
▶ Stable |
Hybrid exemptions expanded |
| Toyota Yaris Cross Hybrid |
Tk 41–47 lakh |
Tk 41–47 lakh |
▶ Stable |
Hybrid exemptions expanded |
| Toyota Sienta Hybrid |
Tk 33–38 lakh |
Tk 33–38 lakh |
▶ Stable |
Hybrid exemptions expanded |
| Honda Vezel e:HEV (hybrid) |
Tk 40–46 lakh |
Tk 40–46 lakh |
▶ Stable |
Hybrid exemptions expanded |
| Nissan Note e-Power (hybrid) |
Tk 26–30 lakh |
Tk 26–30 lakh |
▶ Stable |
Hybrid exemptions expanded |
| Nissan Leaf (EV) |
Tk 28–34 lakh |
Tk 27–32 lakh |
▼ Cheaper |
EV duty concessions |
Read the first three rows together and the budget's effect is obvious: in June, a petrol Axio and an Axio Hybrid were about Tk 5 lakh apart. Today the gap is closer to Tk 2 lakh — the tax code just paid most of the hybrid premium for you.
Ranges reflect year, mileage, grade, and battery condition. For an exact landed cost on any specific car, run it through our free vehicle duty calculator — it's updated for the new FY2026-27 structure.
What actually changed on 1 July
Three things, in plain terms:
1. Supplementary duty went up on combustion-engine cars above 1,200cc. Industry reporting during the budget session put the added tax burden on the 1,200–1,600cc band at roughly 23.5%, with BARVIDA estimating a price impact of around Tk 2.7–3 lakh on affected models. This band was chosen deliberately — the government wants to steer buyers away from fossil-fuel cars — but it's also exactly where middle-income demand lives, which is why BARVIDA pushed back publicly both before and after the budget.
2. Hybrids and EVs got expanded exemptions. The June proposal initially looked like it left hybrids out in the cold. The final Act was kinder: hybrid and electric vehicles gained new or expanded duty exemptions. For buyers, the practical meaning is that the imported hybrid you were considering in June costs about the same today — while its petrol alternative costs lakhs more.
3. The 5-year import age limit stayed. BARVIDA proposed extending it to 8 years; the government didn't take it up. Reconditioned imports must still be under five years from manufacture — full details on our import rules and regulations page.
What this means model by model
Petrol Axio and Yaris buyers — you're facing the clearest before/after jump in the market. If a clean petrol Axio was at the top of your budget in June, it may now be out of it. Two ways forward: find pre-July cleared stock while it lasts, or step across to the hybrid version — and with the gap down to roughly Tk 2 lakh, the hybrid now wins the maths as well as the fuel bill.
Prius and Aqua buyers — the two most-searched hybrids in Bangladesh came through the budget untouched. The Prius remains the benchmark: proven battery life in Dhaka heat, parts everywhere, and the strongest resale of any hybrid here. The one thing the budget doesn't change: a hybrid is only a good buy if the battery is healthy, so insist on the auction sheet and inspection report. If you're not sure how to read one, start with our Japanese auction grade guide.
Yaris Cross and Vezel buyers — the compact-SUV segment is where hybrid demand is growing fastest, and both held their June prices. Between the two, the Yaris Cross offers Toyota's newer hybrid system and an available 4WD variant; the Vezel counters with a roomier cabin. Either way, you're now paying petrol-Axio money plus a few lakh for a far newer class of car.
Sienta and Note buyers — the practical picks. The Sienta Hybrid is the cheapest way into a family 7-seater that dodged the duty rise, and the Note e-Power gives you electric-motor driving in Dhaka traffic without ever plugging in — at a price the budget left alone.
Leaf buyers — the only row pointing down. Charging is still the honest limitation, so the Leaf suits you if you have home charging and mostly city driving. But on purchase price it has never been better placed against petrol rivals.
Buy now or wait?
There's no duty cut on the horizon for petrol cars — the policy direction is explicitly toward EVs, and mid-year duty reductions are rare. So for petrol models, waiting is unlikely to help and pre-budget-cleared stock will only get scarcer. For hybrids, prices are stable and the choice comes down to the right car, not the right month. You can see every unit we currently have — each with its auction sheet and our own inspection report — on our live stock page, and our buying guide walks through the full process from order to port.
How we calculated these figures
We took typical CIF values for each model from recent Japanese auction purchases, applied the pre-July and post-July duty structures using the same engine duty calculation we use for customer quotes, and sense-checked the results against our actual customs clearances at Chittagong since 1 July. Figures are market estimates for typical units, not quotes — a specific car's year, grade, and mileage move the number. For the legal source material, see the NBR's FY2026-27 budget documents.
Sources: Finance Act 2026 overview — Tuhin & Partners · Daily Sun — higher tax on imported fuel-powered vehicles · The Daily Star — Budget 2026-27 price changes · The Financial Express — BARVIDA duty demands · NBR FY2026-27 budget documents
Prices in this article are market estimates for typical reconditioned units and are not binding quotes. Duty figures follow the Finance Act 2026 as understood at the time of writing; the NBR's SROs govern in case of any difference.
