Car importers in Bangladesh have urged the country’s army backed interim government to allow older vehicles in to keep them affordable to buyers, the head of the vehicle importers association said recently .

Currently, Bangladesh allows import of used cars which are four years old.

“But we urged the government to allow us bring in cars used for six years or more, which will lower costs by up to 40%” said Abdul Haque, president of Bangladesh Reconditioned Vehicles Importers and Dealers’ association.

He also urged the govt to waves an up to 350% supplementary duty proposed on the import of microbuses, which comprise 15% of all used vehicles imported in Bangladesh, every year.

200 Bangladeshi importers bring in 8,000 or more reconditioned vehicle every year. More than 90 percent of the cars on Bangladesh roads are Japanese, mostly Toyota.

Despite the increase in import, sale of reconditioned motor, vehicles in Bangladesh has drastically fallen in the wake of constant queries by income tax officials.

Owners of the showrooms of reconditioned motor vehicles told the media that they used to sell 25 to 30 cars a day in the past, which has now come down to two to three.

Generally, the import of reconditioned motor vehicle goes up before general elections in Bangladesh, because candidates require more vehicles for the convenience of their campaigns, according to local media reports.