LANDIKOTAL
President Frontier Customs Agents Association (FCAA) Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Zia-ul-Haq Sarhadi has demanded changes in newly introduced `Faceless Customs Assessment’, making it convenient and practical for business community dealing in import and export through upcountry dry ports such as Peshawar.
In a press statement issued here on Sunday, Zia-ul-Haq Sarhadi who also Senior Vice President Pak-Afghan Joint Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PAJCCI) and Executive Member Sarhad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI), said that centralization of Goods Declarations (GDs) process at Karachi port causing difficulties for business community of other cities due to delay in processing and clearance.
The government must immediately engage with the business community to craft flexible and practical policies, Zia emphasized.
He also welcomed a recent decision by Peshawar High Court (PHC) directing FBR to make necessary amendments in the system and bring it in conformity with the scheme governing the assessment and clearance of goods.
The court also issued directive for restricting application of Faceless Custom Assessment to clearance of goods reached at Azakhel Dryport.
Zia explained that under the new system introduced by Custom Department, all Goods Declarations (GDs) were routed to the Central Assessment Unit (CAU) in Karachi, even if they are filed at local dry ports.
This centralization has resulted in delays in clearance, as local agents cannot directly communicate with the assessing officers in Karachi in case of queries or objections are raised,” he added.
Delays have become the norm under this system. Clearance that once took days now often takes weeks as a result, shipments remain stuck at ports, attracting heavy demurrage charges which are borne by the importer.
These demurrage fees are paid to foreign shipping lines, leading to a drain on Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves.
The Faceless Assessment system should be Station wise instead of Karachi only, Zia suggested. He said regardless of how noble the intentions behind the new system may be, if its outcomes don’t align with ground realities, it becomes more of a hurdle than a reform.
