Used car import to Pakistan simplified after ECC decision
Pakistan Times Business & Commerce Desk
KARACHI: About 452 imported reconditioned cars with engine capacity ranging from 800 to 1800 cc will be cleared by the Customs authorities in next couple of days after the decision of Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the Federal Cabinet.
Chairman All Pakistan Motor Dealers Association H M Shehzad said here Monday, the ECC meeting chaired by the Prime Minister two days before has decided that imported reconditioned cars will be cleared at a duty allowed in the Customs General Order (CGO) 10/2004 of August 31 2004.
"We are highly thankful to the Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz and Chairman Central Board of Revenue (CBR) Abdullah Yousuf who have accepted our demands and asked Customs to fully implement the said CGO", he said.
He said that customs authorities were demanding higher import duty whereas the CGO 10/2004 had allowed the rang of duty from $ 5,000 to 18,000 as fixed duty in dollars on the imported second hand automobiles.
Shehzad said that on the plea of car dealers, the chairman CBR very kindly accepted their demand that duty should be levied in accordance with the CGO 10/2004 and moved a summary for the ECC. He was of the opinion that ECC's decision has simplified the import of reconditioned cars and removed the last lacuna.
He said that the importers will pay about Rs 550 million to the national exchequer in duties against the import of them cars. Shehzad pointed out that earlier, importers had paid Rs 365 million to customs against the import of 336 cars with engine capacity of 800 to 1800 cc.
These cars were cleared from September 3 to October 5, 2004, he added. He claimed that importers will pay Rs 20 billion to the national exchequer per annum against the import of reconditioned cars.