Agri-Tech and Forestry is the most immediately exportable of the Gelephu Mindfulness City's eight priority industries. Bhutan's agricultural profile, its forest resource and the Indian market across the border make controlled environment agriculture, high-value processing, certified timber and carbon projects credible, and the Customs Act 2025 matters here more than in any other pillar. There is no sector-specific statute. Basnet Law Pte. Ltd., the first law firm incorporated in the Gelephu Mindfulness City, advises growers, processors, forestry operators and investors under the Companies Act 2025, the Customs Act 2025, the Income Tax Act 2025 and the commercial statutes of 2026. This page explains what the framework provides and how we advise on a project under it.
Our legal advisory
- Framing the expression of interest to the Agri-Tech and Forestry pillar, the first gate at which the Authority assesses the business case.
- Advising on company or branch requirements and the resident director.
- Advising on farm, plantation and processing sites under lease arrangements.
- Customs structuring under the Customs Act 2025: free trade zones, licensed warehouses, manufacturing licences and drawback.
- Supply, offtake and processing contracts under the Sale of Goods Act 2026 and Unfair Contract Terms Act 2026.
- Carbon and biodiversity projects, and the line at which a credit becomes a regulated environmental instrument.
- Founders company applications before the 31 December 2030 cut-off, and work passes for foreign agronomists and managers.
What the GMC framework provides for agri-tech and forestry
GMC lists Agri-Tech and Forestry among its eight priority industries and applies that list as a screen on every expression of interest. There is no sector statute, and the published record says the pillar still needs cold chain, logistics and a settled position on land tenure. No GMC land statute has been published; land is made available on lease, and the lease itself sets term, use, development obligations and termination. Leases are exempt from the Unfair Contract Terms Act 2026, so their exclusions are enforced as written.
The Customs Act 2025 shapes a processing-for-export model. Customs duty is charged on goods imported into the customs territory, which is GMC excluding any free trade zone, and excise duty on goods manufactured in GMC; the rates for both are prescribed by Gazette order, and the Act contains no tariff. Dutiable goods arriving by air or road go first into a free trade zone unless exempted. Manufacturers of dutiable goods need a manufacturing licence, and licensed warehouses defer duty or avoid it on goods for re-export. Drawback refunds duty on unused goods re-exported within six months and on imported inputs used in manufacture where the product is exported within twelve months. Every declaration must give a full and true account.
Produce and processing contracts sit under the Sale of Goods Act 2026 and the Unfair Contract Terms Act 2026, in force from 15 June 2026: goods sold in the course of business carry an implied condition of satisfactory quality, and exclusion clauses in supply contracts must pass a reasonableness test.
Carbon and biodiversity projects touch the Financial Services Act 2025. An environmental instrument recognised by the Regulator, whether an emissions allowance, a carbon credit or a certificate attesting to environmental attributes, is a specified investment, so dealing in, arranging or advising on such instruments by way of business needs a licence from the Gelephu Financial Services Office. The Act names no registry or standard; the Regulator decides recognition. A supplier selling attribute certificates with its own goods, and a company retiring credits against its own footprint, have exclusions to test. No GMC statute creates a carbon tax or compliance market.
The Income Tax Act 2025 charges companies at 15% on chargeable income, and capital expenditure on machinery or plant attracts an annual allowance of 33⅓%. An approved founders company in an approved founders industry, one not carried on in GMC at a scale adequate to its economic needs and with favourable prospects, is exempt on that qualifying business for up to 15 years including extensions; the designated officer decides and no approval may be given after 31 December 2030. Foreign staff need work passes under the Employment of Foreign Workforce Act 2025; categories and any levy sit in regulations.
Who this is for
- Controlled environment agriculture and high-value crop producers.
- Food and forest-product processors manufacturing for export.
- Certified timber and non-timber forest product operators.
- Carbon, biodiversity and environmental attribute project developers.
How a legal advisory engagement runs
- Positioning. We advise on defining the activity and the pillar, and on framing the expression of interest around scale, prospects and export.
- Entity and site. We advise on incorporation or branch registration and on the site lease.
- Customs design. We map premises against the free trade zone and customs territory, advise on manufacturing or warehouse licences and declaration records.
- Contracts. We draft supply, offtake and processing agreements to the 2026 Acts and test any certificate or credit arrangements against the perimeter.
- Tax and people. We assess the founders industry case, advise on an application before the 2030 cut-off where realistic and on work passes.
Frequently asked questions
Can I recover duty on imported inputs if I export the product?
Yes. Drawback applies where imported goods are used in manufacture and the product is exported within twelve months, and to unused goods re-exported within six months. Claims are documented against the original import entries.
Is there a GMC land law for farms and plantations?
No. No land statute has been published, and a settled position on land tenure is one of the things the pillar still needs. The lease negotiated through the Economic Development Group is the law of the site.
Are carbon credits from a forestry project regulated?
Where the Gelephu Financial Services Office recognises the instrument, yes: dealing, arranging, advising and custody by way of business need a licence. Selling certificates alongside your own produce or retiring credits against your own emissions may fall within an exclusion, which we test on the facts.
What are the import duty rates?
The Customs Act 2025 states none; rates and exemptions are set by Gazette order or individual direction, and Bhutan's sales tax, customs and excise laws also apply through Schedule C to the Application of Laws Act 2024. We confirm the position for each tariff line before pricing a shipment.
Contact
Basnet Law Pte. Ltd. is the first law firm incorporated in the Gelephu Mindfulness City.
You may contact Basnet Law at basnet@basnetgmc.com or office@basnetgmc.com for any legal queries related to GMC.
