Govt to Launch Pilot Probashi Card Next Month

Prime Minister Tarique Rahman addresses a meeting on the Probashi Card at his office on Saturday.

The government will launch the pilot phase of the Probashi Card programme next month, introducing a dual-currency debit card designed to provide Bangladeshi expatriates with a wide range of financial, travel and public service benefits.

The decision was approved at a meeting on the Probashi Card chaired by Prime Minister Tarique Rahman at the Prime Minister's Office on Saturday, Deputy Press Secretary Shahadat Shadhin said.

He said the initiative aims to enhance the social and economic empowerment of expatriate Bangladeshis while improving access to banking, international payments and government services through a single card.

The Probashi Card is one of the government's election pledges and follows the rollout of initiatives such as the Family Card, Farmers' Card and Sports Card.

Under the programme, cardholders will receive a range of privileges, including complimentary airport lounge access at home and abroad, priority immigration clearance through dedicated counters, meet-and-greet services at international airports, discounts on airline tickets and hotel bookings, and airport transport facilities for signature cardholders.

The card will also provide priority services at government hospitals, discounts at selected private hospitals, insurance coverage, free transportation of the bodies of deceased expatriates, and rehabilitation support for returnee migrants.

Additional benefits include priority access to land registration, mutation, utility connections, licensing, foreign investment services, remittance reward points, credit scoring and loan facilities, direct money transfers, and expedited National Identity Card (NID), passport and consular services.

The pilot phase is scheduled to begin in the middle of next month, with Janata Bank issuing the first batch of Probashi Debit Cards.

According to the plan, the government aims to distribute 50,000 cards by December this year and 200,000 cards by June next year. In the second phase, all Probashi Card services will be transferred to Probashi Kallyan Bank.

During the meeting, the Prime Minister also directed the authorities to modernise the National Skills Development Authority to better align workforce skills with current and future international labour market demands.

He further instructed officials to ensure that Bangladeshis living abroad are gradually brought under the coverage of the Probashi Card programme.

The meeting was attended by Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas Employment Minister Ariful Haque Choudhury, State Minister Nurul Haque, Prime Minister's advisers, senior officials of the Expatriates' Welfare Ministry, the Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training (BMET), and other relevant agencies.