NBR likely to finalise new freight forwarding policy today
Thursday, 16 August 2007
Doulot Akter Mala
The National Board of Revenue (NBR) is likely to finalise the much-awaited freight forwarding policy-2007 today (Thursday).
The board will sit in a meeting today with the freight forwarders aiming to finalise the policy making some amendments to the earlier one.
The board has invited the leading freight forwarders to attend the meeting with a view to minimising the confusions and clarifying the policy, approved by Finance Adviser Mirza Azizul Islam in an inter-ministerial meeting last month.
The board has prepared the policy in consultation with different ministries while most of the recommendations of the freight forwarders have been included, sources concerned said.
The sources expressed their optimism about removing the confusions among the freight forwarders and the government in the meeting.
They expressed the hope that the NBR would be able to issue a statutory regulatory order (SRO) by this month if both the sides could reach a consensus in the meeting.
With the policy taking effect, the freight forwarding business will come under a licensing system.
The policy will make it mandatory for the freight forwarders to obtain licences from the customs department and prior permission from the Bangladesh Bank.
The government in an inter-ministerial meeting finalised the draft policy (licensing and operation) with some amendments to it, dropping some recommendations earlier agreed upon by NBR officials, joint forces and freight forwarders.
The NBR is trying to form a comprehensive policy with the consent of all departments concerned following the international rules, sources said.
It is not possible to run transparent export-import activities under the international multi-modal transport system without participation of freight forwarders or cargo agents, they added.
On April 5 last, a committee comprising the freight forwarders' association, joint forces in Chittagong, customs and NBR officials, reached a consensus on amendments to the Freight Forwarding Policy-2006.
But later opinions of different ministries were included in the policy dropping some of the recommendations of the freight forwarders.
Besides, the government has relaxed the regulation on foreign and joint venture freight forwarding agents operating in the country, allowing them to repatriate their profit any time.
The National Board of Revenue (NBR) is likely to finalise the much-awaited freight forwarding policy-2007 today (Thursday).
The board will sit in a meeting today with the freight forwarders aiming to finalise the policy making some amendments to the earlier one.
The board has invited the leading freight forwarders to attend the meeting with a view to minimising the confusions and clarifying the policy, approved by Finance Adviser Mirza Azizul Islam in an inter-ministerial meeting last month.
The board has prepared the policy in consultation with different ministries while most of the recommendations of the freight forwarders have been included, sources concerned said.
The sources expressed their optimism about removing the confusions among the freight forwarders and the government in the meeting.
They expressed the hope that the NBR would be able to issue a statutory regulatory order (SRO) by this month if both the sides could reach a consensus in the meeting.
With the policy taking effect, the freight forwarding business will come under a licensing system.
The policy will make it mandatory for the freight forwarders to obtain licences from the customs department and prior permission from the Bangladesh Bank.
The government in an inter-ministerial meeting finalised the draft policy (licensing and operation) with some amendments to it, dropping some recommendations earlier agreed upon by NBR officials, joint forces and freight forwarders.
The NBR is trying to form a comprehensive policy with the consent of all departments concerned following the international rules, sources said.
It is not possible to run transparent export-import activities under the international multi-modal transport system without participation of freight forwarders or cargo agents, they added.
On April 5 last, a committee comprising the freight forwarders' association, joint forces in Chittagong, customs and NBR officials, reached a consensus on amendments to the Freight Forwarding Policy-2006.
But later opinions of different ministries were included in the policy dropping some of the recommendations of the freight forwarders.
Besides, the government has relaxed the regulation on foreign and joint venture freight forwarding agents operating in the country, allowing them to repatriate their profit any time.