Dual-currency card limits in Bangladesh: paying for ads and software

Banks may allow online international card payments for legitimate goods and services, such as software, e-books and subscriptions, of up to USD 300 per transaction. These payments come out of your unused travel quota plus up to USD 1,000 a year, and banks must check that applicable taxes are paid (same circular).

Two practical points for advertisers:

• Keep each charge under USD 300. Meta charges your card when you reach your payment threshold. Set the threshold below USD 300 so each charge fits the per-transaction cap.
• Businesses and freelancers have their own allowances. BASIS-member IT firms can use up to USD 40,000 a year, which the circular says can include digital marketing. e-CAB-member e-commerce firms get USD 10,000 a year. Banks can also remit the cost of advertising Bangladeshi products in foreign online media against an invoice. Freelancers can get a virtual card for app, licence and hosting costs, capped at USD 500 a year, and can pay business expenses from their ERQ account.

Spending against the travel quota needs your passport endorsed by the bank. Card spending funded from an RFCD or another private foreign currency account doesn't.

VAT. Meta and Google add VAT to Bangladeshi ad accounts that haven't added a 13-digit BIN. Google's rate is 15% (Google Ads Help; Meta Business Help). If your business has a BIN, add it to your ad account.

FX fees. Many Bangladeshi dual-currency cards charge an FX markup of 2% to 3% only when the transaction currency isn't USD (example schedule, effective 1 Aug 2026). On a USD-billed ad account you avoid the markup but pay for your dollars at the bank's selling rate.

• Work out your yearly ad and tool spend, then compare it with your entitlement.
• Pay subscriptions first each month, then ads.
• Keep a backup payment method on every ad account.
• Ask your bank how much entitlement you have left before a big campaign.

If you earn in USD from foreign clients or platforms, there is another way to pay for USD costs. nsave gives you USD account details and a USD international Visa card. The card is funded with money you receive from abroad by ACH, or to a USD, GBP or EUR IBAN. You don't buy dollars from a local bank to fund it.

• 0% fee to top up.
• 0% fee to spend in USD.
• 1% to 1.5% FX fee on non-USD transactions.
• No card limits.

Online payments are capped at USD 300 each and come out of your unused travel quota (USD 18,000 per adult per year since September 2026) plus up to USD 1,000 a year. Your bank applies the rules, so check with them.

Yes. Under Bangladesh Bank's September 2026 circular, online international card payments come out of your unused travel quota plus up to USD 1,000 a year.

There are no card limits.

No. Rules change, and your bank's terms are what apply to your card. Check with your bank.