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pAKIStAN’S fIRSt INdeptH NewSpApeR ON CUStOmS
ABC Certified Vol 2 Issue No. 33
Karachi, tue Sept 2 - mon Sept 08, 2014
weekly
Regd. No, mC-1381
UNeARtHINg tAx fRAUd
LyARIRAId
CustomsIntelligence seizes700sacksofpoppyseed
Multan Customs unearthed the biggest tax scam in its history by Q-Mobile of Rs 771.8 million, claims Collector SarfrazWarraich | See pAge 06 |
This is the first seizure of banned poppy seed from a private godown in Karachi
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CLARIfyINg pROCedURe
MCC Appraisement(East) Collector NajeeburRehmanAbbasiclarified procedureforpriorexamination permissiontoownerand authorizedclearingagentunder Section79ofCustomsAct,1969. See pAge 02 | ImpLemeNtINg QmS
A Queue Management System (QMS) has been introduced at the Model Customs Collectorate of Appraisement-West to facilitate the authorised clearing agents and importers | See pAge 05 |
On the directives of Assistant Collector Preventive Imanullah KhanTareen, Hyderabad Customs seized 15,000 litres smuggled Iranian oil worth Rs 1.6 million near Hitri Police Station. | See pAge 11 |
— Exclusive Customs Today photos
SeIzINg IRANIAN OIL
KARACHI
SOHAIL RAB KHAN www.customstoday.com
he Anti-Smuggling Organization (ASO) of the Directorate General of Customs Intelligence and Investigation-FBR, Karachi raided a godown, located near
Niazi Chowk in Lyari and recovered 700 sacks (28 tonnes) of poppy seed. According to details, an ASO team comprising Incharge Haji Muhammad Aslam, Akmal Hashmi, Pervez Zardari, Jamal Shah and others on the directives of Director General (DG) Directorate of Customs Intelligence and Investigation-FBR Lutfullah Virk and Director Asif Margoob Siddiqui raided a godown and seized huge quantity of poppy seed weighting approximately 28 tonnes. It is pertinent to mention here that the huge quantity of poppy seed was illegally stored in the godown. The Directorate General of Customs Intelligence and Investigation has registered an FIR against godown owner Junaid and goods owner Mumtaz alias ‘Lahori’. Incharge ASO Haji Muhammad Aslam informed Customs Today that the team of ASO on the directives of DG Customs I&I Lutfullah Virk raided a godown in Lyari, a sensitive area in Karachi in recent days. He further said that the poppy seeds were also smuggled to Turkey, USA and United Arab Emirates due to its high demand there. “A criminal case has been registered against Junaid, the owner of the godown and Mumtaz alias ‘Lahori’ the owner of the goods for violating Customs Act, 1969”, he added. He further said that the poppy seed is one of the main ingredients of narcotics for making high quality opium, heroine and other drugs. “The export of poppy seed is banned under Export Policy Order (EPO) and this is the first seizure of banned poppy seed from a private godown in Karachi during last many years”, he maintained. To a query, ASO Incharge further informed this scribe that further investi-
gation was underway in this regard and attempts were being made in order to arrest the godown and goods owners. Karachi Customs Intelligence has conducted a number of such raids in different areas and markets of the metropolis and recovered smuggled goods including black tea. Information was received by the authorities of Customs Directorate of Intelligence and Investigation that a huge quantity of smuggled black tea from Afghanistan was stored at different warehouses in certain Bazaars. A team of Customs Intelligence and Investigation raided a warehouse in Jodia Bazaar and recovered 34 tonnes of high quality smuggled black tea, worth around Rs 18 million, which was smuggled through Afghan Transit Trade and other illegal routes. It is worth mentioning that the Directorate of Intelligence and Investigation-Customs following the directives of Director General Intelligence and Investigation-Customs Luftullah Virk has conNiscated smuggled goods worth over Rs 400 million in three months. Sources informed Customs Today that the Directorate of I&I has been directed by DG Luftullah Virk to eliminate the menace of smuggling in order to facilitate the trade.
Criminal case registered against the owners of godown and goods for violating Customs Act, 1969
Price Rs. 50.00
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KARACHI
SEPTEMBER 02 - SEPTEMBER 08, 2014
KCAA announces annual polls on Sept 25
KARACHI: The Karachi Customs Agents Association (KCAA) has announced date for holding of its annual general elections for the year 2014-15.According to details, the elections of Karachi Customs Agents’ Association (KCAA) would be held on September 25, upon completion of the one-year tenure of the incumbent KCAA body. KCAA General Secretary Faisal Mushtaq confirmed to Customs Today that the association had decided to hold annual general elections on Sept 25.
Customs court grants bail to clearing agent KARACHI
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he Customs court granted bail to the importer-cum-clearing agent Abdullah of M/s Cosmos Enterprises, who was allegedly involved in huge tax evasion of Rs 12.6 million for unlawfully clearing panaflex sheets and other miscellaneous items from inbond warehouse. It is pertinent to mention here that the case was detected by the Research and Development (R&D) Section of MCC-Appraisement (East) on August 12 and a 7-day remand was granted by the competent authority in order to investigate the accused. During the course of investigation, the R&D Section of MCC-Appraisement (East) recovered Rs 4.1 million from the accused Abdullah on his pointation. Subsequently, the R&D Section had also requested for extension of remand for 7 more days, which was allowed by the Customs court through its order. Later, further investigation conducted by R&D officials revealed that the accused Abdullah was involved in tax evasion of Rs 4.1 million and the amount was recovered from the accused. One of the investigation officers in R&D Section confirmed Customs Today that the accused Abdullah has been granted bail by Customs court, adding that his involvement in the case had been investigated.
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Valuation ruling of wallpapers KARACHI
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he Directorate General of Customs Valuation has determined the customs values of wallpapers through valuation ruling no.680/2014 Under Section 25-A of the Customs Act, 1969. The new valuation ruling has superseded the valuation ruling no 658/2014, issued on March 29, 2014 in connection with the customs values of wallpapers. According to details, the customs values of certain Chinese wallpapers have been fixed at $1.87per kilogramme, European at $2.53 per kilogramme, Korean, Japanese, Malaysian, Thai and Singaporean at $2.25 per kilogramme and the value of the American wallpaper has fixed at $2.60 per kilogramme. It is pertinent to mention here that it was the first valuation ruling issued by Customs Valuation Director Abdul Rasheed Shaikh after assuming the charge in place of former Director Surriya Butt.
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Appraisement-east clarifies procedure for prior examination The owner or authorized clearing agent shall examine goods in person and supervise the de-sealing KARACHI
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odel Customs Collectorate (MCC) Appraisement (East) Collector Najeebur Rehman Abbasi, through a public notice no 4/2014 (A), clariNied procedure for prior examination permission to owner/authorized clearing agent under 1st provision to SubSection(1) of the Section 79 of Customs Act, 1969. According to details, the MCC-Appraisement (East), to facilitate trade and streamline procedure with regard to permission to owner (or his authorized clearing agent) for prior examination in terms of 1st proviso to sub-section (1) of the Section-79 of the Customs Act, 1969, following procedure is prescribed for strict adherence by all concerned. In the Public Order, the owner/authorized clearing agent shall Nile a written request in the WeBOC, automated system to the Additional Collector of the relevant Wharf/Terminal Operator under 1st proviso to sub-section (1) of the Section-79 of the Customs Act, 1969 for examination of imported goods by himself prior to Niling of Goods Declaration (GD). He will mention, in detail, the reasons for making such request as well as the name/CNIC number of person nominated for making such examination. As per details, the competent ofNicer will satisfy himself vis-à-vis propriety of the request by examining relevant documents as available in the system i.e. bill of lading (BL), IGM (Import General Manifest) particulars before approving/rejecting such request. Upon receipt of an EDI (Electronic Data Interchange) message approving such request, the Wharf/Terminal Operator shall immediately
ground the container(s) and request the DC/AC for deputing appropriate Customs staff to de-sealing the same and retrieval of the invoice (if any). The owner/authorized clearing agent shall examine goods in person and supervise the de-sealing. The Customs ofNicer concerned shall not verify the list of the goods produced by the importer/authorized clearing agent. The notice further stated that upon completion of the examination, the owner/authorized clearing agent shall, within 48 hours, Nile GD accordingly. Thereafter, the GD will be processed in the WeBOC. However, during subsequent examination/assessment process, if it transpires that precise declaration is not made by the importer/authorized clearing agent despite having extended physical examination facility, adjudication proceedings for mis-declaration shall
be initiated against them under the relevant laws. Meanwhile, the Model Customs Collectorate (MCC) Appraisement (East) has Ninalised procedure for regulating partial shipments of plants and machinery in case of project imports, it has been learnt. According to details, the Collectorate has taken the step to effectively monitor partial imports of machinery and equipment as provided by the Fifth Schedule of the Customs Act, 1969. The Collectorate has also described procedure for the convenience of importer/authorized clearing agents in this regard. According to the procedure, the importer/authorized agent must upload the following documents in respect of complete project at the time of Niling declaration. Furthermore, supplier-wise list of all scheduled partial shipments of
machinery, equipment and components to be imported indicating details of each individual item will have to be provided. However, if schedule of imports is not availability, overall detail of the whole plant will be declared through system. The declarant will indicate “partial shipment No.1” (in the description column) at the time of Niling the Nirst declaration under Section 79 of the Customs Act, 1969; thereafter with each successive import, he will indicate the numerical order of the respective partial shipment along with details of the previous GDs e.g “partial shipment” No.3 (previous imports vide GD Nos----). This will allow the appropriate ofNicer to call for the record of the previous imports available in the system and examine attached documents particularly those uploaded with the Nirst partial shipment. According to the schedule, the appraising ofNicer will scrutinize the GD, as provided in Section 80 of the Customs Act, 1969 and endorse the same to the Principal Appraiser concerned who will check and forward the same to the Deputy/Assistant Collector concerned for its Ninalization. The importer/authorized agent will ensure that, wherever required, all statutory certiNicates mandated under the Import Policy Order (in vogue) are uploaded with each partial shipment. The procedure is to be strictly followed without any deviation and any delay in clearance of subject goods due to unavailability of prescribed documents with the GD will be attributable to the importer/authorized agent, while the procedure is aimed at streamlining the clearance of partial shipments. It is pertinent to mention here that the Boards’ instruction as contained in the preamble of the Fifth Schedule of the Customs Act, 1969 and para 1(xi) of Chapter-I of Customs General Order (CGO) 12/2002 dated 15-06-2002 will have over-riding effect.
Petitiononvalueofshoe-polishbyOsakaElectricalallowed KARACHI
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he Directorate General of Customs Valuation through Order in Revision No.64/2014 has allowed the review petition filed by M/s Osaka Electrical Corporation on revision of Customs values of shoe-polish in tin, against Valuation Ruling No 663/2014. According to details, the authorities concerned of Pakistan Customs-FBR after hearing the petitioner (M/s Osaka Electrical Co) and going through the complete record of the case convinced that the subject ruling 663/2014 has been issued in haste and without applying any valid logic behind the fixation of values. Moreover, while fixing the values, the international prices of ingredients, mode of packing and type and origin of shoe-polishes imported have been totally ignored.
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During the proceedings, the petitioners also produced samples of shoe-polishes to support their contention that the types of polishes are also different such as wax or liquid based, etc. The Order further stated that, it is therefore imperative that while doing the survey to determine the values, a representative of Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) and petitioner shall be associated and it will be appreciated that the exercise is completed within next 15 days. In view of the aforesaid arguments the case is remanded to Director Valuation for de novo consideration. In the meanwhile, the Collectorates may be advised to assess the subject commodity under Section 81 of the Customs Act, 1969 @US$1.10 per kg as per impugned valuation ruling, which includes the cost of packing as well. In case there is any downward revision, the petitioners will be entitled to refund for excess of duty
Collectorates may be advised to assess the subject commodity under Section 81 of the Customs Act
paid. It is pertinent to mention here that the petitioner M/s Osaka Electrical Corporation had adopted a view point that Valuation Ruling No 663/2014 on shoe-polish in tin under PCT 3405.1010 was high under the prevailing uncertain condition of economy and created lot of problems as burden of taxes, higher cost of price, fluctuated dollar rate and raising inflation which caused increase cost of clearance due to which the importers are unable to provide superior services to serve the nation on reasonable price. In response, the respondent was of the view that the importers have submitted analysis of tin shoe-polish cost per kilogram from their supplier namely M/s Anhui Technology Imp & Exp Co Ltd, China @ US$0.65per Kg, but they have failed to furnish the same time of issuance of Valuation Ruling. The respondent further prayed that the value of shoe-polish in tin/liquid based survey may be maintained.
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NATIONAL 03
SEPTEMBER 02 - SEPTEMBER 08, 2014
Customs court recommences after holidays
LAHORE: Customs Court resumed hearings on Tuesday after court holidays from August 2-25. The court remained closed during the prolonged holidays of 23 days and resumed working today. Customs Judge Tanveer Akbar heard various cases on his first day at office following the holidays.
Mis-declaration:FIR registeredagainst exporter,clearingagents LAHORE
m HAyAt
Bajwa, Nisar for devising strategy to achieve revenue target
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Tariq Bajwa expressed satisfaction over the performance of Customs Appraisement-South, customs officers urged to gear up their efforts to achieve the target of Rs 2810 billion for the FY 2014-15 KARACHI
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BR Chairman Tariq Bajwa and Member Customs Nisar Muhammad Ali Khan visited Karachi Customs House and held meetings with the Pakistan Customs ofNicials on revenue operations at Chairman Secretariat. The Pakistan Customs Enforcement-South Chief Collector Muhammad Nazim Saleem, AppraisementSouth Chief Collector Nasir Masroor, MCC Appraisement-East Collector Najeeb-ur-Rehman Abbasi, MCC Appraisement-West Collector Muhammad Saleem, MCC Preventive Collector Syed Muhammad Tariq Huda, MCC Port Collector Muhammad Bin Qasim, Surriya Butt, Directorate of Transit Trade Director General Khawar Fareed Maneka and others were also present in these meetings. Chairman FBR was informed that the Customs duty collection in JulyAugust of the current Niscal year stood at Rs26.145 billion, 24 percent higher than Rs21.017 billion collected in the same period last year. Sales tax collection at import stage surged by 16.38 percent to Rs54.003 billion in these two months of FY14 compared with Rs46.403 billion in same period last year while income tax collection surged by 15.39 percent to Rs15.4 billion. He was also informed that total import value in July-August 2014 declined by 20 percent to
— Exclusive Customs Today photos
he Customs Intelligence and Prosecution Dry Port Mughalpur has lodged an FIR against an exporter and clearing agents in a fraud of $34600 foreign exchange. According to the Customs authorities, exporter M/s Shehanshah Traders exported goods and articles by using fake‘E’form in connivance with the customs clearing agents and did not bring in valuable foreign exchange worth $34,600. The exporters exported hand belts worth $1,500, garments $1,500, religious books $1,000, salt $1,000, Islamic books $1,000, printing press blades $3,000 and furniture worth $1,000, the customs officials explained. The deputy collector of customs adjudication had asked the customs authorities to register a criminal case against the accused. The deputy collector also imposed a penalty equal to ten times of the customs duty on all goods, they added. The customs authorities alleged that M/s Shehanshah Traders, M/s New Sea Line International Customs Clearing Agent, M/s Pak Ports Customs Clearing Agents, and M/s Danish Traders Clearing Agency deliberately inflicted a loss of $34600 on the national exchequer. They added that a case under Customs Act and Foreign Exchange Regulation Act has been registered against the exporter and the clearing agents. The customs authorities said that further investigations were under process and raids were being conducted in order to arrest the accused.
member Customs Nisar Khan Rs301.969 billion while dutiable imports increased by 8.0 percent to Rs16.797 billion and duty-free imports declined by 44 percent to Rs114.79 million. Tariq Bajwa expressed satisfaction over the performance of Customs Appraisement-South and said that Customs had a tough revenue target for the current Niscal year. During the meetings, FBR Chairman and Member Customs stressed upon achieving revenue targets of respective departments and asked the ofNicers to evolve a comprehensive strategy in this regard.
fBR Chairman tariq Bajwa
Bajwa reviews tax operations ISLAMABAD
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BR ChairmanTariq Bajwa has instructed all field formation officers to gear up their efforts to achieve the revenue target for the current fiscal year. As per details, the FBR chairman has given the instructions to officers during a presentation given by member IT Miss Ra’ana Ahmad at the FBR headquarters. In this presentation, member IR Policy and FBR spokesperson Shahid Asad,
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member Admin Shahid Hussain Jatoi, member Inland Revenue Operation Muhammad Ashraf Khan, member Customs Nisar Ahmad Khan, Riffat Shaheen, member Accounting Khawaja Tanveer Ahmad, memberTaxpayer Audit Haroon KhanTareen, member Legal Ahmad Dildar, member Enforcement andWithholdingTax Ali Suleman Abbasi and Director General WithholdingTax Seema Majid were also present. The presentation was organised to review the steps taken by the FBR for revenue collection and tax reforms.
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NATIONAL
SEPTEMBER 02 - SEPTEMBER 08, 2014
moscow lifts ban on Serbian dairy products
MOSCOW: Russian Customs has lifted ban on dairy imports from Serbia on the guarantees of the Serbian veterinary service and results of expert analysis proving that recently identified problems were corrected. Some experts were of view that this move is aimed at an apparent attempt to woo the Serbia an EU membership candidate amid Russia's standoff with the West. As Russia had introduced a one-year ban on meat, fish, dairy, fruit and vegetables from the US, the EU, Canada, Australia and Norway, earlier this month, it has been also searching new markets for trade.
Pak-China Customs data sharing committee declared invalid
Customs Appellate tribunal Karachi functioning at one-third capacity
KARACHI
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KARACHI
Syed m ASLAm
www.customstoday.com BR, through a letter to Karachi office, has declared a recently formed committee invalid, which was formed to discuss and share trade data between customs authorities of Pakistan and China. Sources confirmed Customs Today that FBR has made the recently formed committee invalid by stating that a committee on developing Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) for ensuring the product authenticity and sharing trade data between the Customs authorities of two countries has already been working at FBR Headquarters, leaving no need for another committee. It is pertinent to mention that the Chinese government has expressed its desire to discuss the trade data with Pakistani customs to avoid irregularities in invoicing and mis-declaration. On which, the FBR Karachi office has recently constituted a 3-member committee comprising of Collector MCC Appraisement-East, Collector MCC Appraisement-West and a Director from Directorate General of Reforms and Automation. However, a team had already been working at FBR Headquarters from Sept, 2013. Sources informed this scribe that a technical proposal containing the electronic data exchange mode, data requirement and proposed timelines for competition of the technical works would also be shared between the Chinese and Pakistani customs through email.
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Potentialtaxpayers servedshow-cause noticesinLahore he Lahore Broadening of Tax Base (LBTB) has issued 1,500 showcause notices to the potential taxpayers and enterprises Under Section 122C of the Income Tax Ordinance 2001. The notices have also been served on such individual and enterprises which were declared as potential taxpayers on the bases of the assessment of their properties or they had conducted taxable transactions. The LBTB, through the show-cause notices, informed the potential taxpayers to file returns of their income tax until September 30, 2014. The LBTB has claimed that the potential taxpayers were given a golden opportunity on March 28, 2014 to voluntarily file tax returns, but they paid no heed to the notices. The taxpayers are required to submit wealth statement, wealth reconciliation statement and explanation regarding sources of assets before the due date. —CT Report
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he Customs Appellate Tribunal is working at one-third of its capacity because one of its three benches in Karachi is lying vacant for over two years. The Tribunal, which serves as a forum to settle revenue-related disputes arising out of appraisement, valuation, preventive is the successor of Customs, Excise & Sales Tax Appellate Tribunal established in 1985 under Section 194 of the Customs Act to ease off the burden from the Honorable Sindh High Court. There were three such Tribunals:- one each at Karachi, Lahore and Isl a m abad, then. In 1999 the number of benches increased to total eight:- 3 at Karachi, 2 at Lahore, 2 at Islamabad including Headquarter and Chairman’s OfNice and one at Peshawar. The number of benches of Customs Appellate Tribunal remains the same today. With an amendment made in 2009, a new Inland Revenue Services came into existence and all the cases pertaining to Federal Excise and Sales Tax were transferred to Appellate Tribunal Inland Revenue to let Customs Appellate Tribunal deal only with cases pertaining to Customs to help resolve revenue-related disputes arising out of appraisement, valuation
and preventive departments. Informed sources told Customs Today that of the three Customs Appellate benches at Karachi, which are housed in the same building, Bench III is lying vacant for over two years. However, under an interim arrangement the Chairman of the Tribunal Tariq Mahmood Chaudhary comes to Karachi for around a week every month to hear the cases at Bench III as Member Judicial. The former chairman of the Tribunal Naimatullah also
used to do the same. Sources claimed that this interim arrangement still continues at the vacant Bench-III with the Tribunal Chairman acting as Member Judicial. It may be mentioned here that each Bench of Customs Appellate Tribunal comprises one Member Judicial and One Member Technical. A sitting District Judge, an advocate eligible to be appointed a judge of
High Court of a retired High Court judge is qualiNied to become a Member Judicial while Member Technical has to be an ofNicial of the Customs Services Group with at least three years of service in the same position as per an amendment made this year from 5-year limit previously. Both Member Judicial and Member Technical are Grade 21 positions. A source defending the interim arrangement of hearing the cases at Bench-III w i t h Chairman of the Tribunal acting as Member Judicial without Member Technical said that a single-member Bench could hear a case if the revenue involved is up to Rs 5 million. Even Bench-I and Bench-II did not have a Member Technical until a few weeks ago, he claimed. With the Bench-III lying vacant the three Benches at Karachi that serve as revenue-related dispute-solving forum for both the Customs as well as parties that disagree with appraisement and valuation issues at Karachi, Hyderabad, Quetta and Gwadar Collectorates of Customs, the Customs Appellate Tribunal is functioning at one-third of its capacity. An earliest appointment of Member Judicial and Member Technical at Bench-III is imperative to let the Customs Appellate Tribunal Karachi perform to its fullest capacity for the speedy decision of cases.
LahoreCustomsI&Iblowsthelidoffhugetaxscam LAHORE
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he Customs Intelligence and Investigation has blown the lid off a scandal involving tax and duty evasion to the tune of millions of rupees and has seized 14 imported containers. Official sources said that Customs Intelligence and Investigation DG Lutfullah Virk was tipped off about a gang involved in the unlawful unloading of heavy duty imported goods with replacement of low duty goods by breaking seals of containers at bonded career near Manga Mandi. The DG, constituted a raiding team comprising Additional Director Mohsin Rafiq, Deputy Director Dr Rizwan Salabat, Superintendent Gulzar Butt, Intelligence Officers - Mian Muhammad Yasin, Zahid Saleem Mirza, SM Abbas and Syed Amir Raza Rizvi under the supervision of Intelligence Director Imtiaz Ali Khan. The team intercepted an imported container No APHU-6944339 loaded on a vehicle (P-8362) near Manga Mandi, some 36-km away from here which was later taken to a bonded carrier“DOCKS Pvt”allegedly by
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— Exclusive Customs Today photos
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deputy director dr Rizwan Salabat
Additional director mohsin Rafiq
an importer. When the team dashed to the site, seals of the containers were broken illegally with rod cut and heavy duty imported electronic and auto parts goods were being allegedly replaced with low duty tissues, marble slabs, glass balls and clay pots. On seeing the raiding team, all culprits escaped fromthe sceneunder shade ofdarkness.The entire goods were taken into custody after registration of a case against eight accused. The gang used to resealed imported containers properly after unloading and replacing heavy duty goods with low duty goods on the way to Lahore from Karachi.They later despatched these containers to Lahore Dry Port for examination and clearance after payment of nominal 5% taxes and duties instead of 35%. On the basis of preliminary investigation, a total of 12 such containers were detained at Lahore Dry Port and one at Dry Port Faisalabad. Meanwhile, one of the intelligence officers oftheraidingteamMianMuhammadYasinhasreceived life threats. It is to be noted that Mian Muhammad Yasin had detected a tax evasion of Rs200 million last month.
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NATIONAL 05
SEPTEMBER 02 - SEPTEMBER 08, 2014
ANf seizes 30kg drugs, nabs six peddlers
ISLAMABAD: The Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF) has seized 24.68 kilogramme of heroin, 5,750 psychotropic tablets and 2.20 kilogramme of charas and arrested six drug smugglers along with three vehicles. According to ANF, the force captured the drugs and nailed the peddlers in five operations carried out in Multan, Kohat, Peshawar and Karachi.
Appraisement (east) starts clearing vehicles through weBOC Go-ahead given for the assessment of vehicles under baggage, gift and TR scheme through WeBOC, automated system KARACHI
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T Up country dry ports vital for interregional trade: Ishaq Butt SIALKOT
zAfAR mALIK
www.customstoday.com ll Pakistan Dry Ports Association Chairman Muhammad Ishaq Butt said that the role of up country dry ports will become vital in the future with the growth of inter-regional trade, especially due to improving trade relations among Saarc countries and predictable peace in the region.Talking to Customs Today here, he said that all issues related to the up county dry ports would be resolved on priority to drive full benefits from these interlinked terminals. Ishaq Butt, who is also the Chairman of Sialkot Dry PortTrust (SDPT), proudly informed that Sialkot Dry PortTrust (SDPT) enjoyed a unique honour of being the first-ever dry port in private sector established in 1985 in the entire Asia. He said that Sialkot Dry PortTrust (SDPT) was the pioneer of dry ports in private sector, which facilitated the export/import of the region at their doorsteps. Muhammad Ishaq Butt told this reporter that the up country dry ports were facing a number of issues due to implementation ofWeBOC. He said that there was no such infrastructure to respond quickly to address these issues. Due to absence of trouble shooting/problems solving mechanism, considerable delays are observed which causes cancellation of GDs, missing of vessels of export goods and additional financial loss to all the stakeholders, he pointed out. “Installation of scanners at Karachi ports and high frequency of checking of customs bonded cargo at Karachi ports was need of the hour, which was already examined and checked by the Customs and ANF at up country dry ports, causing missing of the vessels and extra costs. Moreover, ruthlessly opening of cartons for rechecking causes extra costs and receiving of damage cargo at destination result not only in financial losses to the exporters but also earn bad name for the country,” Ishaq Butt detailed.
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he Model Customs Collectorate-MCC of Appraisement (East) has allowed the clearance of vehicles from September 1, 2014 through “Vehicle Assessment Module” under baggage/gift/TR scheme. Collector, MCC-Appraisement (East) Najeeb-ur-Rehman Abbasi through a Public Notice No.6/2014 has given go-ahead for the assessment of vehicles under baggage/gift/TR scheme through WeBOC, automated system. The Collector, MCC-Appraisement (East) also informed Member Customs-FBR Nisar Muhammad, Chief Collector of Customs (AppraisementSouth) Nasir Masroor, Chairman Karachi Port Trust (KPT) and all stakeholders including Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FPCCI), Karachi Chamber of Commerce & Industry (KCCI), Karachi Customs Agents Association, All Pakistan Shipping Agents Association and others in this regard. The Collectorate has taken the said step in order to facilitate the passengers, clearing agents as well as importers and to reduce their dwell time during clearance of vehicles. As per the Public Order, all stakeholders including passengers, clearing agents and importers are advised to get their User IDs from the OfNice of the Deputy Collector (Facilitation/User ID) for processing of their GDs as Niling of GDs under previous regime of One Customs shall be discontinued with effect from 31 August, 2014. The Collector, MCC-Appraisement
Appraisement-West implements Queue Management System
KARACHI
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Queue Management System (QMS) has been introduced at the Model Customs Collectorate of Appraisement-West to facilitate the authorised clearing agents and importers. (East) has nominated Asim Rehman, Assistant Collector of Customs Group-VIII as focal person for smooth switch-over to WeBOC mod-
According to details, automated token machines have been installed outside the offices of the assistant and deputy collectors to facilitate the clearing agents during the hearing of their cases. Moreover, proper seating and lighting arrangements for traders and clearing agents have also been made in the hearing halls of the MCC Appraisementule. It is pertinent to mention here that the Customs Today in its report of August 16, 2014 had already revealed that the Directorate of Re-
West. The clearing agents and importers have expressed their gratitude for the development which came after many complaints from traders. It is pertinent to mention here that the Collector, MCC AppraisementWest Muhammad Saleem has taken action on a report by Customs Today and ordered to arrange seating for traders during hearing of cases. forms and Automation had completed its work on “Vehicle Assessment Module” and it would be implemented by the end of August.
CustomsAdjudication-Isummonscigarettesmugglers LAHORE
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he Collectorate of Customs Adjudication-I has issued showcause notice to three individuals namely Haji Sadiq, Zeeshan and Qasim, for allegedly hoarding and dumping 1,289 cartons of smuggled cigarettes, 19 cartons of Indian gutka and 62 ‘sacks’ of ‘naswar’ worth Rs 11 million. According to details, Directorate General of Customs Intelligence and Investigation-FBR, Regional OfNice Karachi received credible information that Haji Sadiq, Zeeshan and Qasim were involved in selling and hoarding of contraband items.
According to the information, the intelligence staff raided Yousuf Plaza and ‘Chanti Lane’ where the items were allegedly dumped. During investigation, it was established that the accused smuggled foreign cigarettes, gutka and naswar. It was also found that the accused had violated the provisions of sections 2(s) & 16 of the Customs Act, 1969 punishable under clauses (8) (9) & (89) of sub-section (1) read with sub-section (2) of section 156 of the Customs Act, 1969. The Collectorate of Customs Adjudication-I has summoned the accused for hearing on September 4, 2014. Meanwhile, the Collectorate of Customs Adjudication-I has issued a show-cause notice to the Bismillah
Show-cause notice issued to Haji Sadiq, zeeshan and Qasim, for allegedly hoarding 1,289 cartons of smuggled cigarettes, 19 cartons of Indian gutka and 62‘sacks’of‘naswar’
Industry in Rs 4.8 million tax evasion case. According to MCC-Appraisement (West), Bismillah Industry imported a consignment of zinc-coated coils and other items with chargeable customs duty of 5 percent. However, the Customs authorities found that the importer had wrongly declared the imported items to avoid taxes to the tune of Rs 4.8 million, including customs duty of Rs 4.1 million and sales tax Rs 710,321. The goods in this case were valued at Rs 27 million. The Collectorate of Customs Adjudication, therefore, issued a show-cause notice to the importer and Nixed the hearing for September 4, 2014.
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SPECIALREPORT
SEPTEMBER 02 - SEPTEMBER 08, 2014
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KARACHI/MULTAN
SOHAIL RAB KHAN/ImRAN ALI KHAN www.customstoday.com
he Collectorate of Customs Adjudication-I has issued a contravention report against New Allied Electronics (Private) Limited and Digicom (Private) Limited (proprietors of the Q-Mobile cellular phones brand). The Model Customs Collectorate (MCC) Multan has issued the report on alleged tax evasion of Rs 771.8 million under the head of sales tax, additional sales tax and income tax.
The total imported mobile phones were 2,409,660, including 1,194,385 of the New Allied Electronics and 1,215,275 of the Digicom evading Rs 680.5 million sales tax, Rs 54.22 million additional sales tax and Rs 37.09 income tax. During the verification, the customs came to know that companies had mentioned smartphones as medium price phones in documents to evade the half of the payable duty on import of smartphones. Customs authorities have issued notices to the New Allied Electronics and the Digicom under Section 26 of the Customs al Act, 1969, asking them to The tot d mobile e t r clarify the observation of o p im ere w the customs staff and to s e n pho , provide import docu0 6 6 ments in terms of SRO 2,409, g n 460(I)/2013 and SRO includi 85 of 3 367(I)/2013. , 4 9 1 , 1 The representatives of Allied
d New nics an Electro 75 of 2 1,215, m o Digic
the accused provided two judgments -- both dated February 6, 2014, passed by the Sindh High Court (SHC). The court barred the customs authorities from collecting three percent value addition tax on the phones imported by the petitioners until February 20, 2014. However, no other supportive information has been provided by accused. The importers have also reportedly mentioned incomplete description of the smartphones and succeeded in importing smartphones at a duty of Rs 250 per set instead of the applicable Rs 500 per set. Sources told Customs Today that these companies have also not been paying sales
tax on import of smartphones for more than a year. The importers, however, explained that non-payment of additional sales tax by the importing companies has been supported by the judgments of the SHC. The Digicom officials have reiterated their arguments that they had paid the duty on the phone sets as per the examination of customs under category B of SRO 460(I)/2013. The customs authorities, however, denied the claim saying that the company was paying Rs 500 duty on A300 which is cheaper than i6 model for which they are paying Rs 250 duty tax. Talking to Customs Today, Multan Customs Collector Muhammad Sarfraz Warraich said that this was made possible only by the anti-smuggling and anti-tax evasion operations of his staff. He said that verification was difficult due to bulk quantities but his staff assisted him a lot during the verification process.
SEPTEMBER 02 - SEPTEMBER 08, 2014
SPECIALREPORT 07
— Exclusive Customs Today photo
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08 EDITORIAL
SEPTEMBER 02 - SEPTEMBER 08, 2014
Founder & Chairman zulfiqar Ali Editor Rahil yasin editor@customstoday.com.pk For advertising & subscription marketing@customstoday.com.pk +92-308-2106195 www.customstoday.com Phones: 042-35781643-4, Fax: 042-35781645 Address: 627, Siddiq Trade Centre, Gulberg, Lahore
edItORIAL
political pressure, corruption & economic woes
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onstitutionally, the office of the auditor general of Pakistan is the fifth most powerful institution in the country after the offices of the president, the prime minister, the chief justice of Pakistan and the army chief, and weak to the extent that it is unable to defend its credibility in the wake of pressure from all sides. This organisation was established to ensure fiscal discipline, transparency and public accountability in governmental operations. It was also expected to develop an internal control environment in the executive departments to minimise the wastage of the public money and discourage fraud. But keeping in view its past performance, the working of this prestigious institution is not different from the other government departments which are drenched in corruption, negligence, mismanagement and monotonous routines. The fault doesn’t lie in the institution alone, but all the stakeholders, who are part of the government and part of the official machinery, are responsible for curtailing the freedom of the auditor general. The auditor general has highly qualified staff of 1,500 members, and is classified as ‘charged expenditure,’ which means the office has a degree of independence in the financial matters but practically it has to look upstream for instructions. If the government wants to ensure transparency in the financial matters, it has to make this institution free of political pressure, coercion and compulsion. A strong auditor general means strong financial matters and less corruption; and less corruption means good governance. When Rana Buland Akhtar, the incumbent auditor general of Pakistan, says that his organisation is not subservient to parliament, but it functions under the constitution, he is right. He says that if the office of the auditor general is not more powerful than parliament, it is not less powerful than parliament. However, the problem in Pakistan is that when a personality is strong, the institution is strong and when personality is weak, the institution is weak. Akhtar’s statement indicates that he is being pressured and this is the point from where problems start and corruption gets a chance to stand on the firm roots. If the institution of the prime minister or any other institution manipulates its authority, it may have some transitory benefits for a certain individual, but it pushes the country two steps back from the road of progress and prosperity. Akhtar has some “secrets”, but it is yet to be seen how he handles the situation. The only panacea to save the system from collapse is in a mechanism of ruthless accountability.
Implications of political impasse LAHORE
dR AftAB AfzAL
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call for disobedience by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf chief Imran Khan has created a stir in the political and economic circles but discredited him as the leader of a popular political party in the country. Even the staunch supporters of the PTI are unable to defend their leader and voices of dissent had been raised within the party circles. However, despite this kind of imprudent call, no one can challenge the sincerity and patriotism of the former
skipper. Another fact… A good sign in this scenario is that the taxpayers have shown more political maturity by not heeding to Khan’s appeal and are filing their tax returns as usual. According to the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), it has realized Rs 134 billion revenue until August 26 as compared to Rs 110 billion collected during the same period of the last fiscal year, depicting a 20 percent increase in the tax collections. On another note, the sit-ins by Pakistan Awami Tehreek of Dr Tahirul Qadri and PTI continue in Red Zone, creating uncertainty in the country. This
trend of political uncertainty is very harmful for foreign as well as local investment. The businessmen often set aside their investment plans in this kind of situation for security reasons. However, according to official circles, the sit-ins have limited effect on the revenue collection. The FBR collected Rs 138 billion by July 31, and this amount is Rs 1 billion higher than the tax collected during the same period of the last year. The stock exchange is under pressure due to continuous sitin as the KSE-100 index is taking a deep plunge due to bearish sentiments prevailing in all sec-
tors. The investors are dumping their stocks in panic and are switching to other sectors of investment, but the people at the helm of affairs are not in a hurry to end the political stalemate. If the government is serious, it should end the war of nerves with Imran and Qadri and find a just solution to the problem. As the government is not taking a decision, the demands from Khan and Qadri are multi-plying with every passing day. The government should not thump its chest on the revenue collection from taxpayers, as low economic activities will definitely curtail taxable income in the near future.
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NATIONAL 09
SEPTEMBER 02 - SEPTEMBER 08, 2014
Customs foils bid to smuggle heroin to Nigeria, two booked
LAHORE: The Pakistan Customs has foiled an attempt to smuggle 250 gramme heroin to Nigeria. According to details, Customs Inspector Farrukh Amin found a parcel containing 250 gramme heroin worth Rs 75,000 at the export section of the General Post Office. Following the incident, the customs has lodged an FIR against two Nigerians, Ikenna Udegbuna and Jane Udegbuna, under Control of Narcotics Substances Act 1997.
Grounding delay at PICT compels importers to absorb extra charges mporters have been facing heavy fines and surcharges for delay in grounding of containers at the Pakistan International Container Terminal (PICT). Sources told Customs Today that importers have been waiting from five to six days for the grounding of containers for examination during the last few weeks. “Importers were being fined for delay even the Karachi Customs Agents Association (KCAA) president has raised the issue with the PICT authorities,”they added. An official of KCAA said that he had requested the PICT authorities several times for an early solution to the problem but nothing has yet been done to improve the situation. “The additional demurrage has also been causing problems for customs agents who were already facing increased questioning by their clients,” he said. Officials of the PICT said that shortage of labour, less gantry cranes and top lifters have been the primary reasons for the long delay. —CT Report
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Smugglingbidsfoiled asbikechainsseized he Customs Intelligence and Investigation thwarted attempts to smuggle motorcycle chains and cloth worth more than Rs1.1 million in two separate actions. As per details, the Customs Intelligence and Investigation intercepted a truck loaded with scrap. However upon search, the officials found 2,250 imported motorcycle chains and 60 branded tyres under the scrap. The made-in-China chains were weighing 2,215 kgs after weightage while its owner failed to produce any legal document of the consignment. —CT Report
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wRIte tO US yOUR gRIeVANCeS: Through CUStOmS tOdAy platform HeLp deSK, now you have chance to dIReCtLy write your problems to top govt. functionaries. If you have any grievances, queries, questions or suggestions, you can write in this section as it provides easiest access to you to approach Customs and Revenue authorities. wHO can write in this section? Importers & Exporters, Customs Agents, Chambers of Commerce, Trade Associations and Customs Officers tO wHOm you can write? Honourable PM, Minister/Secretary for Finance & Revenue, Minister/Secretary for Ports and Shipping, FBR Chairman, Member Customs and Chairperson Senate/National Assembly Standing Committee on Finance & Revenue. Send your letters at: newsdesk@customstoday.com.pk
port generated Rs1,196b in July
multan dry port denotes fast service delivery: Awais Butt MULTAN
ImRAN ALI KHAN
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he Multan Dry Port Trust generated revenue to the tune of Rs1,196 through handling of export and import consignments in the first month (July) of the current fiscal 201415. “The Multan Dry Port Trust (MDPT) is a unique port in the country which can clear any consignment within eight minutes, claimed MDPT General Manager Lt-Col (r) Muhammad Awais Butt. Talking to Customs Today during an exclusive chat, Lt-Col (r) Butt said that the MDPT had been providing the clients with fastest port services through best available resources and cleared their consignments in shortest span of time. He pointed out that the WeBoc, automated system, had helped to overcome many issues of the exporters and facilitated the port authorities greatly, adding that the introduction of the system had enhanced confidence of the business community in Pakistan Customs. The MDPT GM claimed that he had accepted the job as challenge and committed to sparing no effort to overcome various issues at the dry port trust like delay in
clearance of containers and lab examination of chemicals. He boasted that the Multan Dry Port was playing a crucial role in boosting business activities in South Punjab and its adjourning areas. He revealed that the MDPT handled 76 containers in July 2013 and generated revenue of Rs300 million, adding that due to better management, both the business volume and revenue had i n creased s u b stantially. The MDPT GM informed that the Multan Dry port was mainly used for the import of industrial machinery, auto spare parts, chemicals, rubber scrap, general goods, iron and steel. Lt-Col (r) Awais Butt claimed that the revenue earned in July last year of July was Rs55 million while Rs56 million was earned in July of the current year. He urged on the industrialist
and business community of the region to utilise the dry port facility as the MDPT charge almost half of the charges the exporters paid at other ports. He claimed that the Multan dry port offered some extra port services free of cost like crane services. Majority of the exports through the port comprises textiles while grey cloth, cotton yarn, leather goods, raw cotton, rice and general goods are also exported through the port, he added. A c c o rd i n g to the MDPT report, the port handled exports g o o d s weighing 2052,099 kilograms in the month of July (last). Similarly, the port cleared a total of 131 import consignments during the month in question, of which 85 were cleared at Multan while the rest were cleared through Muzaffargarh terminal. The MDPT GM informed that total export consignments re-
multan dry port is playing a crucial role in boosting business activities in South punjab and its adjourning areas
ceived at the port were worth Rs629 million having gross weight of 1809,799 kilograms while import cleared through the port trust during the month of July was worth Rs110 million. He said that the Multan Customs earned Rs110 million during the month of July in the head custom duty and tax collected at Multan Dry Port Trust. Lt-Col (r) Awais Butt informed that the MDPT was providing rapid laboratory examination facility of chemicals, pesticides and fertilizers. “In the past, the MDPT management used to take samples from containers containing chemicals and detain the containers until the report had come,” he pointed out, adding that now the management was providing better services by taking samples from the bulk quantities and released the container with an affidavit as undertaking. Lt-Col (r) Awais Butt informed that the MDPT was providing green channel facility to exporters to save their time and energy for boosting manufacturing. “Due to green channel facility, the business community is taking keen interest in the services of Multan Dry Port Trust and we are hopeful that due to the strenuous efforts and business-friendly policies, the Multan dry port will become one of the best ports of the country,” he concluded.
Unnecessary delay in clearance at pICt To, Member Customs, Federal Board of Revenue, Islamabad
Dear Sir, With due respect and humble submission, I would like to draw your kind attention towards the unnecessary delay in the clearance of cargo at PICT yard Karachi Port. The PICT (Pakistan International Container Terminal) is a private terminal handling cargos at its yards. Due to the misbehavior and mishandling of the MCC West Wharf Collectorate with importers/clearing agents, the burden has been transferred to the PICT and NLC yards. Both the yards are running short of spaces so the PICT ofNloads its cargo at remote yard which is called PMS yard. At the said yard, cargo is not placed properly and importers have to pay heavy demurrage and face Ninancial losses as they often fail to Nind out their container on same day. But unfortunately the importers have to pay demurrage for the same delay due to failure of the
PICT but the PICT staff diverts their failure and earns money from the importers. Therefore I want to bring in your kind notice the mishandling of cargo by the PICT at their yards because the chambers as well as clearing agents associations are not taking up this issue and are uninterested in the solution of a common man’s problem be-
cause their own problems are getting resolved. Sir your cooperation in this regard would be highly appreciated. Yours Sincerely, Sher Afzal Jadoon, Karachi
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10 NATIONAL
SEPTEMBER 02 - SEPTEMBER 08, 2014
Customs Healthcare Society distributes Rs500m relief goods to Idps
PESHAWAR: The Customs Healthcare Society (CHS) distributed relief goods including food packages worth Rs500 million amongst the internally displaced people of North Waziristan Agency. Dr Asif Mahmood Jah, Customs Collector Peshawar and President of the Customs Healthcare Society, told Customs Today that the society would not let the IDPs in the lurch in their hour of need. The relief goods included food items, 1,600 solar fans new cloths, shoes, mates, mosquito net and medicines.
Sit-insinducedspiralinglossesdrawconcerns
PESHAWAR
NAdeR KHAN
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he trading community from across the province has expressed concern over the ongoing sit-ins by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) in Islamabad, regretting that
the prevailing political impasse has been affecting businesses and national economy adversely. Representative bodies of traders and businessmen from different cities including Peshawar, lamented that the marches had hindered economic progress and brought all sorts of business to a halt. Talking to Customs Today Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chamber of Commerce and Industry President Zahidullah Shinwari urged the po-
provincial economy suffers loss of billion of rupees on daily basis due to the political unrest for the last couple of weeks
litical parties to show patience and tolerance for each other and resolve the issues through negotiations. He said the provincial economy was facing loss of billion of rupees on daily basis due to the political unrest for the last couple of weeks, adding that traders and businessmen had stopped all their activities like import of machinery, export etc and following due to the uncertainty. “The traders have been worst
victims of the current political instability in the country,” he claimed and added that economic activity had become almost stagnant as 70 percent capital Nlight had been reported due to unrest. He said that KPCCI was a nonpolitical entity and wanted only political harmony so that the province could Nlourish, adding that the rise in political temperature had negatively impacted the overall economic progress.
Customs,DrugAuthoritylockhornsoverpharmrawmaterialclearance KARACHI
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he clearance of pharmaceutical raw material allegedly by the customs officials without getting prior permission from the Federal Drug Department (FDD) has become a bone of contention between the Pakistan Customs and the Federal Drug Regulatory Authority. The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has already issued notices to 76 customs officials for clearing the raw material. According to details, the Drug Regulatory Authority was of the view that the customs officials were involved in illegal clearance of pharmaceutical raw material, as the importer Intervac (Private) Limited, Lahore, did not have the clearance certificate, which is mandatory under Rule 15 of the Drug (Import & Export) Rules, 1976. Confronting the allegations leveled by the authority, the Pakistan Customs was of the view that in terms of Serial No 7, Part-II (Procedural Requirements) to Appendix-B read with paragraph 5(B)(i) of the Import Policy Order (IPO), 2013, the import of pharmaceutical (allopathic) raw material of pharmaceutical grade in the form of
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unprocessed ingredients is allowed, inter-alia, to pharmaceutical industries holding valid pharmaceutical manufacturing license in accordance with the provisions of the Drug (Import and Export) Rules, 1976.The Import Policy Order, 2013 stated that the import shall be allowed to pharmaceutical industries holding valid pharmaceutical manufacturing license in accordance with the provision of Drug (Imports & Exports) Rules, 1976. It may be mentioned here that the similar situation was witnessed during the regime of SRO673(I)/2005 in 2005 which later on was
rescinded by SRO 552(I)/2008 and the matter was referred to the Federal Board of Revenue for the clarification and the Board vide its letter No. 1/51-STT/06 dated 16-07-2005 categorically instructed the field formations to allow release of imported raw material for the basic manufacture of pharmaceutical active ingredients and for the manufacture of the pharmaceutical products without payment of sales tax and without requiring any certificate from the Ministry of Health in terms of SRO 673(I)/2005, dated 02-07-2005. In this regard, the authorities concerned
of MCC-Appraisement (East) have already written a letter to the Joint Secretary (Imports), Ministry of Commerce in order to clear the entire scenario as per the law and procedure. The sources informed CustomsToday that the Chief Collector-Appraisement (South) Nasir Masroor has also written a letter to the FIA Director Lahore in which he adopted a viewpoint that the clearance of pharmaceutical raw material was allowed subject to the production of valid pharmaceutical manufacturing license in
accordance with the provision of Drugs (Import & Export) Rules, 1976. Needless to mention that the Ministry of Health being the Regulatory Ministry has never objected to the said procedure adopted for the clearance of pharmaceutical raw material. Mir Mansoor, Principal Appraiser while sharing his views with CustomsToday said that he had presented before the authorities concerned of FIA in Lahore and kept a strong point of view according with the procedural requirement of the IPO, 2013 on the behalf of 76 Customs officials, who were allegedly involved in the said case.“The Drug Regulatory Authority is manoeuvering the said case despite the fact that the procedures are clear in the Import Policy Order, 2013 for clearance of pharmaceutical raw material”, he added. Muhammad Arshad, clearing agent of Intervac, while talking to this scribe by telephone, said that the Drug Act, 1976 has clear instructions for clearance of pharmaceutical raw material that the importer does not need clearance certificate from the Ministry of Health. He alleged that the officials in the Ministry of Health were asking for speed money in order to issue clearance certificate, due to this the cost of doing business was increased.
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CARTOONSSPECIAL 11
SEPTEMBER 02 - SEPTEMBER 08, 2014
Large-scale manufacturing recorded 3.9pc growth
ISLAMABAD: The output by the large-scale manufacturing (LSM) witnessed a positive growth as it grew by 3.95 percent in the outgoing fiscal year 2013-14 against the last year, suggested the data of Pakistan Bureau of Statistics issued here.
Stealing NAtO containers
m/s water Link served final notice KARACHI
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fering from cancer disease”, it added. It is pertinent to mention here that the Collectorate of Customs Adjudication-I along with the management of M/s Water
Q-mobile tax fraud
Link including its MD Capt (retd) Ghulam Mustafa, Manager Rizwan Yousuf, Assistant Manager Muhammad Rizwan Ishaq, Supervisor Qaiser Ali and ofNice boy
Muhammad RaNiq Shahzad has also issued show cause notices to M/s Tracon Services, M/s Ehsanuddin & Company and Satrah Khan, driver.
Hyderabad Customs seizes 15,000 litres Iranian oil HYDERABAD
ASLAm ANJUm QUReSHI www.customstoday.com
he Hyderabad Customs has seized 15,000 litres smuggled Iranian oil worth Rs 1.6 million near Hitri Police Station. On the directives of Assistant Collector Preventive Imanullah KhanTareen of the Model Customs Collectorate (MCC), AntiSmuggling Squad Superintendent Nadeem Usmani, Inspector Abdul Ghafoor Sheikh and their team members have seized 15,000 litres of smuggled Iranian oil and arrested two people after lodging an FIR against them. The squad has seized 25,000 litres oil in two weeks. Sources said that Hyderabad Model Customs Collectorate Collector Dr
— Exclusive Customs Today photo
he Collectorate of Customs Adjudication-I has issued Ninal hearing notice to M/s Water Link for presenting its view point before the competent authorities of Pakistan CustomsFBR in smuggling case of NATO/ISAF retrograde containers. The sources informed Customs Today that the Collectorate of Customs Adjudication-I had Nixed August 25, 2014 for hearing the case of M/s Water Link. The sources further stated that the Collectorate of Customs Adjudication-I had issued Show-Cause Notice to the accused involved in the case in February2013 after the MCC-Preventive registered an FIR. “The representative of M/s Water Link requested for the adjournment of hearing 5 times during the entire period after issuance of show cause by the Collectorate of Adjudication-I on the grounds that the Managing Director (MD) of M/s Water Link Capt (retd) Ghulam Mustafa was suf-
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Amanullah Khan tareen Wasif Ali Memon has established an antismuggling squad under supervision of MCC Preventive Assistant Collector Imanullah Khan Tareen to curb the menace of smuggling in Hyderabad.
Local market brimming with smuggled Iranian tiles he local industry has expressed great concern over the heavy influx of Iranian tiles and has urged the government to take effective measures to check the inflow of smuggled tiles which are not only depriving the exchequer of revenue but also posing a great threat to the local industry. According to the All-Pakistan CeramicTiles Manufacturers Association (APCTMA), it has informed the government that Iranian tiles worth Rs12 billion has been dumped in the local market in just a year despite marginal
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revaluation by the FFBR.The association said that the local industry was already struggling to survive in the presence of Chinese tiles while heavy influx of Iranian tiles has threatened it further.The APCTMA cited Customs’documents which reveal massive arrival of Iranian tiles every month, saying that a much bigger quantity had been smuggled into Pakistan. The association informed the FBR chairman that importers had imported over 3.2 million square metres of tiles from Iran. —CT Report
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12
SEPTEMBER 02 - SEPTEMBER 08, 2014
70 teams formed to recover Rs 1.6b in gujranwala region
SIALKOT: As many as 70 special recovery teams of Excise and Taxation Department have started special campaign to recover Rs. 1.6 billion from the tax defaulters in Gujranwala Division’s all the six districts including Sialkot, Narowal, Gujrat, Mandi Bahaud Din and Hafizabad. According to the senior officials, the E&T Department will recover Rs.14.3m as excise duty, Rs. 87.5m as professional tax, Rs. 900m as property tax, Rs. 883m as motor registration tax and Rs. 5.65m as recreation tax from all the defaulters during this special recovery campaign in the Gujranwala region.
FBR collects Rs 134b amid Imran, Qadri’s sit-ins despite a civil disobedience call by Imran Khan, over 20 percent increase has been recorded in the revenue collection in August ISLAMABAD
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— Exclusive Customs Today photo
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BR collected Rs 134 billion revenue until August 26 against Rs 110 billion collected during the corresponding period of the last year, depicting a 20 percent increase in the tax collection, said Shahid Hussain Asad, the member of the InlandRevenue and spokesman for the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR). “The sit-ins by the Pakistan Tehreek-eInsaf and the Pakistan Awami Tehreek entered 3rd week and despite a civil disobedience call by Imran Khan, over 20 percent increase has been recorded in the revenue collection in August,” he said. He said that unlike other economic indicators, the protests and sit-ins did not dent the tax collection efforts of the government in the current month. He pointed out that overall economic situation had slowed down due to the political unrest. Asad said that the FBR had also collected Rs 138 billion till July 31, 2014, which was Rs 1 billion higher than the tax collected in the same period last year. To question, the FBR spokesman said that civil disobedience call by the PTI chairman had negatively affected the foreign investment and economic situation in the country. He added that the busi-
ness community and traders across the country had rejected the civil disobedience call by the PTI chairman. Asad said that the FBR was committed to broadening the tax net and has planned to issue notices to those who had not Niled their tax returns. Meanwhile, the FBR has decided to expand its investigations into Rs 771.8m tax evasion case by the country’s top cellular company, Q-Mobile. After lodging a case against it for alleged theft of customs duty, now it has been decided to also bring income tax and sales tax into the investigation process. Talking to Customs Today, FBR spokesperson and member of the Inland Revenue Policy Shahid Hussain Asad said that evidence is being collected against the company regarding customs duty evasion. “Companies and individuals who get Ninancial beneNits from this country, they should return the same beneNits to the exchequer in shape of taxes. If we want to make Pakistan a prosperous country, we have to pay taxes,” he added. He said that ofNicers of Inland Revenue have been given special instructions to start investigations against all those companies and persons who are involved in any kind of tax theft. These people should voluntarily become part of the tax system, otherwise the system will forcibly bring them into the net, he concluded.
Published by M. F. Riaz, Off. 91, 3rd Flr, Gul Plaza, M.A. Rd., Karachi, for Customs Today and Printed at Dhoom Printing Press Masheer Mahal Building, Off: I. I. Chundrigar Road, Karachi