import
ISLAMABAD: The regulatory taxes imposed by time-bound notifications on the import of luxury commodities, like as cars and mobile phones, were set to expire on March 31, 2023, according to Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) Chairman Asim Ahmad.
Following a Thursday visit to the Directorate General of Customs Intelligence in this city, he spoke with the media.
The revised notification has not yet been released, according to the FBR chairman. The Ministry of Commerce is responsible for making decisions on the importation of autos and mobile phones as well as the imposing of regulatory tariffs on those items.
There will be a 25 percent sales tax on luxury items as of March 8th.
On March 31, 2023, the regulatory obligations placed on automobiles and mobile devices ended. RDs were automatically withdrawn from autos and mobile phones at the import stage since the time-bound SROs governing the RDs on those products had expired.
There is no imminent need to re-impose RDs on the import of cars and high-end smartphones, the man added.
According to him, regulatory levies on the import of cars and mobile phones have been added to or raised through March 31, 2023.
The aforementioned SROs with a deadline had passed. Presently, imports of luxury and non-essential goods are prohibited.
But only the new notification about the imposition of RDs on the import of certain commodities may be issued by the FBR. The Ministry of Commerce must make a proposal in this case, and the FBR will carry it out. The Ministry of Commerce would make the ultimate judgement on this matter, and the FBR would then issue the required SROs, Asim Ahmad stated.
In order to commend the agency’s anti-smuggling efforts, Asim Ahmad, Chairman of FBR, went to the Customs Intelligence Headquarters in Islamabad.
The Directorate General of Intelligence & Investigation-Customs informed FBR Chairman Asim Ahmad on the anti-smuggling operations that were carried out in the Balochistan province, Rawalpindi/Islamabad, and Karachi on Thursday.
The Directorate General of Intelligence & Investigation-Customs’ anti-smuggling operations have resulted in the seizure of essential goods, dry fruits, cigarettes, Indian Origin Gutka, and Shisha flavour worth Rs 754 million over the course of the last four days, Director General of Intelligence & Investigation-Customs Faiz Ahmad informed the FBR chairman.
Asim Ahmad, Chairman FBR, paid a visit to the Customs Intelligence Headquarters on Thursday and praised the work of Faiz Ahmad, Director General, and his staff for their efforts in battling the smuggling threat.
The DG gave the chairman of the FBR the assurance that, in accordance with federal government policy, every effort would be made to eradicate smuggling from the nation.
The Directorate General Customs Intelligence demonstrates a great commitment to dealing with the traffickers harshly.
The chairman’s visit also sends a clear message to smugglers that their activity would not be allowed anywhere in the nation.
The DG added that Karachi’s heavily populated districts are home to the godowns from whence the contraband commodities were found in Rawalpindi and Karachi.
Locals who have been brainwashed by smugglers and their allies congregate and obstruct Law Enforcement Agencies from carrying out any enforcement action, whenever it is attempted. For the personnel from Customs Intelligence, operating in this environment was quite difficult.
However, they were expertly planned and carried out, securing the recovery of massive amounts of illicit products without causing any collateral damage.
Thus, the Customs Intelligence has seized 41,883 bags of fertiliser with a market value of Rs 167.532 million and 44,957 bags of sugar with a market value of Rs 224.785 million during the ongoing campaign against the smuggling of basic commodities. The effort to import massive amounts of 86,840 bags of necessities worth a total of Rs 392.317 million into Afghanistan was effectively thwarted by these operations during the past weekend, the DG Customs underlined. This dealt a devastating blow to the smuggling organisation.
