Chattogram Port Authority has asked the National Board of Revenue for permission to store empty containers outside port yards and off-docks under the supervision of shipping agents and main line operators. In a letter sent to the NBR chairman on July 26, the authority said empty containers are accumulating because fewer are removed than are emptied each day. The proposal aims to ease congestion and support normal port operations.

Port Secretary Syed Refayet Hamim said more than 3,000 of the slightly over 33,000 containers in different port yards are empty. He said they occupy space, make equipment movement harder, and add operational time and costs. The authority said it had first raised the issue with the NBR on October 13, 2025, but had received no response. It also cited arrangements in neighbouring countries for storing empty containers in non-bonded areas.

Chattogram Customs said empty containers are considered bonded goods and cannot be moved or stored without a bonded warehouse licence. BICDA called the proposal unrealistic, saying 18 off-docks had capacity for more than 30,000 additional containers. It said two new off-docks are expected to add capacity for 18,000 more units.