How to Start a Travel Agency in Bangladesh (2026 Guide)

To start a travel agency in Bangladesh, you need four things:

• a trade licence
• a TIN
• an office
• a travel agency registration certificate from the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism (MoCAT)

You apply for the certificate through MoCAT's online Travel Agency Management System (TAMS). The ministry asks for a bank certificate showing at least Tk 10 lakh, a Tk 5,000 application fee, and a Tk 50,000 registration fee plus VAT. IATA accreditation is not required to sell air tickets. Most new agencies issue through an IATA consolidator or a B2B portal first.

Key points

• The rules in force are the Bangladesh Travel Agency (Registration and Control) Act 2013, its 2021 amendment and the 2022 Rules. Running an agency without a valid registration certificate is an offence.
• The official fees are Tk 5,000 to apply, Tk 50,000 to register and Tk 7,500 VAT. The certificate lasts three years.
• To renew, you must show at least Tk 50 lakh of business a year, or Tk 1.5 crore over three years.
• The January 2026 ordinance, with its Tk 10 lakh and Tk 1 crore bank guarantees, has ceased to have effect according to the official law database. A new bill may bring parts of it back.
• IATA accreditation is optional. A B2B portal gives a new agency GDS, NDC and airline fares, plus ticketing, without its own BSP account.
• Fees and rules change. Confirm every figure with MoCAT before you apply.

Step by step: from idea to first ticket

1. Choose a legal form: sole proprietorship, partnership or limited company. A company registers with the Registrar of Joint Stock Companies and Firms (RJSC) first.
2. Rent an office and get a trade licence from your city corporation, pourashava or union parishad.
3. Get an e-TIN from the National Board of Revenue (NBR) and open a business bank account.
4. Keep at least Tk 10 lakh in a scheduled bank and get a certificate showing that balance.
5. Apply on TAMS, pay the fees by treasury challan, and wait for the certificate.
6. Decide how you will issue tickets: through a consolidator or a B2B portal now, or your own IATA accreditation later.
7. Hire or train a ticketing person, register on a portal, and start with holds.

What licences does a travel agency need in Bangladesh?

Every agency needs a trade licence and the ministry's travel agency registration certificate. ATAB membership and IATA accreditation are optional.

Trade licence and TIN

The trade licence comes from the local government body for your office address, for example Dhaka North or Dhaka South City Corporation. Fees depend on the area and type of business, so ask the local office. The ministry asks for attested copies of the trade licence and your Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) certificate.

The ministry registration (the "Civil Aviation licence")

Under the 2013 Act, you may not run a travel agency without a registration certificate. The trade calls it the "Civil Aviation licence" or "CAAB licence". In fact it is issued by MoCAT's registration authority, not by the Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB). You apply online on TAMS, which showed 6,705 active agencies on 8 November 2026.

TAMS lists these documents for a new registration:

• a treasury challan for the Tk 5,000 application fee
• attested copies of an up-to-date trade licence and the TIN certificate
• proof of business address: a holding tax receipt, or a rent agreement and rent receipt
• for a company, the Memorandum and Articles of Association and Certificate of Incorporation; for a partnership, the partnership deed
• an affidavit on Tk 300 non-judicial stamp paper that you will not overcharge, mislead or defraud travellers
• a bank certificate showing a balance of at least Tk 10 lakh
• photos of the office
• a treasury challan for the registration fee and VAT, paid when the ministry asks

The application form in the 2022 Rules also asks for:

• the owner's National ID
• whether the premises are owned or rented, and their size
• the directors or partners
• the agency's bank account

The ministry checks the file within 15 days, then sends a demand for the registration fee. Its service charter gives 50 days in the Dhaka metropolitan area and 60 days elsewhere. The 2022 Rules require you to display the certificate at your office.

ATAB membership

The Association of Travel Agents of Bangladesh (ATAB) is the agencies' trade body. The ministry does not require membership. ATAB's membership form asks for:

• your ministry certificate, trade licence, TIN and office rent deed
• office photos
• two ATAB members as proposers
• at least one staff member certified by NHTTI, Biman, ATAB's training institute or a GDS company

Ask the ATAB secretariat for the current fees.

How much money do you need to start a travel agency?

The official ministry fees come to about Tk 62,500. The bigger commitment is the Tk 10 lakh balance your bank certificate must show. On top of that come office rent, salaries and working capital for buying tickets.

The ministry figures come from TAMS. The IATA figures come from IATA's fee table, valid from February 2025.

Working capital matters more than fees.

• On a B2B portal, you pay from a prepaid wallet when you issue a ticket.
• As an IATA agent, you pay BSP on fixed dates, whether or not your customer has paid you.

Plan for renewal from the start. To renew, TAMS asks for:

• proof of Tk 50 lakh of business a year
• an up-to-date tax certificate
• for a limited company, three years of audited accounts

Keep every invoice, ticket record and bank statement.

What happened to the 2026 travel agency ordinance?

On 1 January 2026 the government amended the 2013 Act by ordinance: the Bangladesh Travel Agency (Registration and Control) (Amendment) Ordinance 2026. It added:

• bank guarantees of Tk 10 lakh for offline agencies and Tk 1 crore for online agencies
• a ban on buying or selling tickets from another agency
• bans on false bookings and on sharing GDS sign-ins
• the agency's name, registration number and price on every ticket
• tougher penalties

The official Laws of Bangladesh website now notes that the ordinance has ceased to have effect under Article 93(2) of the Constitution.

On 2 April 2026 a parliamentary committee recommended that it be brought back to parliament later as a bill (The Daily Star). As of 8 November 2026, TAMS lists only the 2013 Act, the 2021 amendment and the 2022 Rules, and we found no replacement law. A new bill may bring back some of these rules.

This is not legal advice. Confirm the current rules with MoCAT before you apply.

What office and staff do you need?

You need a real office and at least one person who can book and issue tickets. The 2022 Rules set no minimum office size, but TAMS asks for office photos and proof of address.

• Ticketing executive: books, issues and reads fare rules, and handles void, refund and reissue. Hire experience here first.
• Sales: quotes customers and follows up holds before they expire.
• Accounts: handles deposits, receipts and the records you need at renewal.

At renewal you list your staff with their education and experience.

Do you need IATA accreditation to sell air tickets?

No. IATA accreditation lets an agency issue tickets itself and settle with airlines through IATA's Billing and Settlement Plan (BSP). It needs capital, a financial security or prepaid payment, and often each airline's own approval. Most new agencies start without it. Our IATA vs non-IATA guide explains BSP, the GoLite and GoStandard levels, requirements and costs.

How do you get GDS access and ticketing without IATA?

A Global Distribution System (GDS) is a booking network such as Sabre, Travelport (Galileo) or Amadeus. It lets you search and book, but issuing needs IATA accreditation or the airline's own authority.

Without IATA you have two options:

• book through a consolidator, or
• use a B2B portal that already connects to GDSs, to NDC (New Distribution Capability, the airlines' direct-connect standard) and to airline systems.

For your own GDS terminal, contact the GDS company's office in Bangladesh. Ask about fees, training and any minimum booking commitment. Never borrow another agency's GDS sign-in. The lapsed 2026 ordinance listed this as grounds for suspending or cancelling a registration, and a new law may do the same.

How do you start with a B2B portal?

1. Check the portal. Look for:

   • a ministry registration and an IATA code you can verify
   • a real office
   • written terms on wallet refunds
   • security such as two-factor sign-in

   Our B2B portal checklist goes further.

2. Register your agency with your company details, trade licence, NID and ministry certificate.
3. Set up staff logins, giving each person only the access they need.
4. Fund the wallet with a small amount first, and keep the receipts.
5. Practise on holds. Read the fare and baggage rules and the ticketing time limit, and issue only when the customer has paid.
6. Learn after-sales early: void, refund and reissue, and what each one costs.

How Ticket Lagbe handles this

Ticket Lagbe is a B2B travel platform for IATA and non-IATA agencies in Bangladesh. It holds IATA code 42343755 and trade licence TRAD/DSCC/034340/2023, with an office at Meem Tower, Sukrabad, Dhaka.

• Registration: you sign up with company details, trade licence, NID, logo and your ministry certificate if you have one. After approval you fund a BDT wallet by:
  • bank deposit or bank instant payment
  • bKash
  • Bangla QR
  • card
• Fares: one search covers 1050+ airlines, including:
  • Sabre, Travelport and Amadeus
  • NDC content
  • direct connections to US-Bangla, Novo Air, Air Astra, IndiGo, Air Arabia and Jazeera Airways
• Booking: hold, then issue, with time limits and fare rules per fare. You request refunds, reissues and voids from the portal.
• Team and support:
  • sub-users with set access
  • two-factor sign-in
  • a Key Account Manager (KAM)
  • 24/7 support

Questions? Contact our team.

Register your agency on Ticket Lagbe