The proposal to release $645 million, the fourth tranche of a $4.7 billion loan programme for Bangladesh, was due to go before the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Executive Board on February 5.

But this has now been pushed back by five days to February 10, a senior finance ministry official confirmed The Daily Star yesterday. However, the date was deferred due to internal procedures, said the official.

Earlier, Chris Papageorgiou, who led an IMF delegation to Bangladesh between December 3-18 last year, had said that the proposal would be submitted on February 5.

"The IMF's Executive Board will consider the completion of the review based on the implementation by the authorities of prior actions," the IMF said in a statement after the visit.

One of the major conditions for the release of the fourth tranche was revenue mobilisation to increase the country's tax-to-GDP ratio -- one of the lowest globally.

Another condition was reducing tax exemptions and unifying the rate of value-added tax (VAT).

On January 9, the National Board of Revenue (NBR) increased VAT and supplementary duty (SD) on nearly 100 goods and services.

The VAT was raised to 15 percent, up from as low as 5 percent. The VAT rate hike on certain products and services drew a lot of criticism from businesspeople and economists.

Afterwards, Finance Adviser Salehuddin Ahmed told journalists that they were reviewing the VAT rate on some products and services and might withdraw the new VAT rate on them.

The finance ministry is also negotiating with the IMF and will withdraw the new VAT rate on some products, the finance ministry official added.