Policy framed for hassle-free, quick release from seaports

A newly-framed government policy would facilitate 'hassle-free' and expeditious release of capital machinery and spare parts imports for industries from seaports.
Officials said the customs authority framed the policy aimed at relieving the importers of alleged hassles and harassment in availing the government-offered duty exemption on import of capital machinery, plant machinery and spare parts for industrial units.
Finance Minister AMA Muhith recently approved the policy titled 'Tax and duty waivers on import of plant machinery or capital machinery and spare parts'. The National Board of Revenue (NBR) finalised it with the opinion of customs officials and apex chamber's leaders.
"The policy has been framed to remove difficulties and harassment of the businesses at the port as they allege interrogation by customs officials at port at the time of availing the duty benefit," said one official.
Conceptual differences and explanations among customs officials on duty-exempted imports create complexities in valuation of products.
The remedial policy stipulates clear direction for removing the lacuna. However, the policy does not carry any new or additional benefits beyond the waiver and exemption the existing law provides to the importers but will facilitate hassle-free availing of the benefit by resolving the existing complexities.
The NBR offered duty benefit to different industries through issuing Statutory Regulatory Order, officials said.
In many cases, machinery and spare imports for new types of industries are not covered by the existing SROs, they said.
The complexities include difference in classification of machinery by the customs officials.
Many importers alleged they failed to get the duty benefit or had to wait long for customs assessment due to non-cooperation by customs officials.
Also, some importers try to take undue advantage of such complexities and misuse the duty-waiver facility.
Differences in classification of machinery, lack of knowledge on the imported machinery, ambiguity in language of orders of the revenue board, different perceptions of customs officials on applicability of the benefits create the tangles at port.
Import of capital machinery requires paying 1.0 per cent duty. However, many sectors, including export-oriented and import-substitute industries, enjoy duty-waiver facility on import of the machinery and spare parts.
In case of import of unassembled machinery, industry faced problem as customs officials consider those parts as commercial imports and slap duty at regular rates.
The policy has clarified the definition of new, assembling industry, given definition of plant, direction on how to classify the unassembled products. It also gave guidance to the importers to avail duty benefit on import of spares through different ports.
However, the customs wing tagged some conditions for importers in the policy.
Importers have to install the imported machinery in their respective factories within six months of import for enjoying the duty exemption.
"There must be physical investigation report by experts from mechanical and electrical faculties of public universities. Importers will have to carry the cost of investigation," it is stated in the policy.
In case of import of capital machinery in several consignments, importers have to complete the import procedure of all of the machinery within one year of the release of first consignment.
Importers have to submit a bond on non-judicial stamp that the duty-free imported machinery would be used in the relevant industries. In case of use of the machinery for other purposes, change in ownership or handover to others after release from ports, importers will be bound to pay tax-duties at regular rates on the imports.
The customs authority will return the bond after getting investigation report from the experts after six months of establishment of the imported machinery in industrial units.
The policy has kept a provision for the formation of a committee comprising representatives of the revenue board, industries ministry, the Board of Investment (BoI), Bangladesh Tariff Commission and the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) to recommend the benefit for new, technology-based and highly value-added sectors.
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