About 30 percent of the 10 crore mobile handsets currently in use in Bangladesh were imported illegally, said the telecom regulator yesterday, as it launched the IMEI number database to stop tax evasion.

Telecom Minister Mustafa Jabbar inaugurated the International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) number database, established with support from the Bangladesh Mobile Phone Importers Association (BMPIA), at the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC).

The minister called the database a milestone for the country's move towards digitalisation.

"A lot of digital crimes are taking place in the country and this database will help us curb those," he said.

About 3.35 crore handsets were legally imported in 2018 while 1 crore entered through different sources, including illegal imports.

Because of the illegal imports, the government is deprived of Tk 1,000 crore to Tk 1,200 crore in taxes, said Md Nasim Parvez, director general of the spectrum management division of the BTRC. The BTRC has developed the database so that customers can check the legality of an imported handset simply by sending an SMS.

Customers intending to buy a device can get the 15-digit IMEI by dialing *#06# from any handset. To check the IMEI number validation, customers need to send an SMS to 16002 typing KYD<space>15-digit IMEI number as the message. A return SMS will confirm whether the device is legally imported or not. So far, the IMEI numbers of 3.84 crore handsets, all imported last year, have been stored in the database.

Md Aminul Hassan, commissioner for spectrum management at the BTRC, said the database would not be used to switch off the handsets of existing users for now. Rather, it will help customers decide whether they would buy an illegally imported handset or not.

Ruhul Alam Al Mahbub, president of the BMPIA, said the process would help ensure tax collection from imported handsets, boosting the government's revenues.

Mahbub, also the chairman of Fair Group, assembler and importer of Samsung brands, said the database would enable the government to know the types of handsets being used and how many are 4G and 3G-enabled and basic phones.

The BMPIA will provide support for the next three years for the maintenance and smooth running of the database.

The customs department will also get an interface of the database to help it verify the authentication of import approvals, officials said.

The government also plans to set up a National Equipment Identity Register, which will save individual IMEI numbers with their associated SIM and national identity card numbers.

Ashoke Kumar Biswas, acting telecom secretary, and Md Jahurul Haque, acting chairman of the BTRC, also spoke.