The National Board of Revenue (NBR) is going to bring in rules to restrict the import of goods which violate intellectual property rights.

A draft of the rules, already prepared by the customs department, seeks to prevent entry of counterfeit goods, said Md Raich Uddin Khan, first secretary of the international trade and agreement of customs at the NBR.

“Entry of counterfeit products will be tougher after the finalisation of the rules. The rules will also act as a guideline to enforce laws related to intellectual property rights,” he said.

The move comes after several countries, including the USA, raised the issue of inadequate intellectual property rights (IPR) protection here. There is also international obligation to protect the IPR, he added.

The draft IPR application rules, prepared by the customs, say that the IPR holders or their authorised representatives can seek to stop release of any type of goods being imported in violation of the IPR.

And customs authorities will be able to ban import of products which are in violation of the IPR, if they find evidence through investigation.

The rules, after being finalised, will also empower authorities to stop release of imported goods if those are found to have been brought through breach of the IPR.

The draft rules say that consignments of the products imported through the breach of the IPR will be confiscated and later destroyed. The IPR holders will have to bear the costs in this regard, according to the draft.

Khan said opinion and feedback have been sought from stakeholders regarding the rules.

The NBR sent the draft to the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry and legal adviser of the US Department of Justice at the US embassy in Dhaka for comment in 15 days.

Khan said there was a section in the customs act 1969 regarding intellectual property protection and the section provides scope for prohibiting import of products in violation of the IPR rules.

At present anyone can import a product from anywhere. But if anyone registers a brand for the sole right to import and market it, then the product cannot be imported by others, he said.

“We expect to finalise the rules within three months,” he said.