The price of the feature phone is likely to scale up from the upcoming fiscal year FY 2080/81 BS. The government of Nepal has revised its tax policies on handsets which could see entry-level phones become slightly costlier.
In his budget speech for FY 2080/81, Dr. Prakash Sharan Mahat announced that the government will implement an Economic Bill 2080 and impose a similar excise duty on feature phones as on smartphones.
Currently, smartphones and feature phones or bar phones bear different excise duties. At the moment, smartphones and feature phones carry 5% and 2.5% excise duty respectively.
Despite smartphones becoming the major daily driver for many in the past decade, many still opt to have a reservation. A Census Bureau of Statistics (CBS) Nepal earlier reported that about 73.2% of families in Nepal still use a general phone which reflects that feature phones still hold prominence in the country.
Also read: 17 Lakh Nepalese Without a Smartphone as per the National Census 2078 Report
Both feature phones and smartphones carry a 5% excise duty which means the former will also see their price go up in FY 2080/81
With the new economic bill, telephone sets, and cellular or wireless telephones are now changed to the subcategory “smartphones and other telephones”. That is the government now recognizes two types of category for phones- smartphones and cellular network or telephones used for cellular networks or wireless networks.”
The government has rebated customs charges on both of these types of phones. However, excise duties have been maintained for both. Smartphones are currently subject to a 5 percent excise duty. Telephones for cellular networks or other wireless networks bear a 2.5 percent excise duty rate. Don’t miss: Best Smartphones Of 2022 in Nepal | Budget to Flagship Phone
The government used to charge a 5 percent excise duty on smartphones by placing them under the code 8517.13.00, while for telephones used for cellular networks or other wireless networks, they used to charge only 2.5 percent by maintaining 8517.14.00. Now, from the next FY 2080/81, both feature phones and smartphones will carry a 5 percent excise duty which is likely to increase the cost of the former more.
Were you planning on buying a feature phone anytime soon?
There is no doubt that smartphone is the current trend. However, many also keep a bar phone with them. The idea of keeping away from any internet connection, emails, and notifications could be a good escape from technology for the old school so, there are plenty of detractors of smartphones.
Anyway, the debate of smartphones vs feature phones could possibly be a never-ending topic but the possibility of the latter’s price going high could strike a concern to many.
Do you keep a feature phone as a secondary device or don’t see them as being relevant today? You can express your opinion on this news in our comments box below.
