Bonded Terminals’ll unify vehicle duty payment, registration scheme—Customs
The leadership of the Nigerian Customs Service (NCS) has argued that the current ban on vehicle importation via land borders will further grow income for the government as the development will encourage massive establishment of bonded terminals where importers using seaports can go and clear their goods seamlessly.
Customs believe that the bonded terminal operation will also boost the collaboration of Customs, the Federal Inland Revenue Services (FIRS) and the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) in unifying vehicle duty payment and registration of imported vehicles which is slated to begin by March 2017.
Attah explained that “Customs is going to grant licences to genuine car dealers to operate bonded car terminals. What this means is that they will not necessarily need to go to Lagos to clear vehicles.
“When a dealer imports his vehicles and he manifests them for the destination in the inland areas, the dealer will only provide some logistics and the Customs will escort them down to the terminal without paying the customs duty yet.
“Of course, there will be Custom outpost around the terminal and the vehicles will stay in the terminal between 28 and 30 days without paying the duties yet.
“If such dealer is lucky and buyers come for the vehicles, they could sell and then go to the Customs desk, pay the duty, get the genuine Customs papers and drive off without being stopped for issues”.
Explaining issues in an interview on a national TV monitored in Lagos, the new image maker of NCS, Mr. Joseph Attah said the restriction of vehicles importation to the seaports will boost its revenue earnings because false declarations, smuggling and informal trade patterns typical of the old land border system will be curbed.
According to him, similar policy on rice boosted local production, disclosing that the Association of Motor Dealers of Nigeria team led by its national president visited the Comptroller General of Customs (CGC), retired Col. Hameed Ali and appreciated the policy banning the importation of vehicles through the land borders.
