NBR again asks BGMEA, BKMEA to expedite process to check forgery
The National Board of Revenue has again asked the apparel manufacturers and exporters associations for submitting utilisation declaration certificates online so that the customs officials can identify counterfeit UD certificates instantly and prevent duty evasion, officials of the revenue board said. They said that many dishonest business houses were forging UD certificates and evading duties in import of raw materials under bonded warehouse facility.
Officials of the customs houses and land customs stations cannot instantly check the authenticity of UD certificates and are bound to release even suspicious imported consignments that intensify the risk of duty evasion, they said.
Since April 2013, the Chittagong Customs House had been repeatedly asking the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association and Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association for submitting UD certificates online to check the forgery and ensure export earnings.
BGMEA and BKMEA issue UD certificates in favour of their members under which apparel makers avail the facility of duty-free import of raw materials to be used in manufacturing of export goods against export orders from foreign buyers.
NBR officials said that in September, the revenue board issued a directive to BGMEA and BKMEA for uploading UD certificates at their respective websites but still both the organisations made little progress in this regard.
In late November, CCH again asked the associations for taking steps in this connection so that the customs officials can prevent tax dodging through misusing UD certificates in import of raw materials for producing export goods, they said.
Customs houses release consignments of imported goods under bonded facilities based on documents such as bond license, needed raw materials for producing export products, letter of credit and UD certificates.
UD certificate, however, is considered as the main document to release imported raw materials.
CCH, in particular, releases almost 500 such consignments every day and the country’s premier customs house has to release those consignments hurriedly considering its importance in export earnings.
The consignment releasing process creates a room for duty evasion as the customs officials have no mechanism to check the authenticity of UD certificates instantly, said a customs official working at CCH.
Such forgeries also occur in other customs houses, he said.
NBR officials said that BGMEA had informed the NBR that they had developed a dedicated website for uploading UD certificates online but in mid-November, CCH found less than 5 per cent UD certificates were uploaded at the website.
On the other hand, BKMEA has yet to respond to the customs authorities in this regard.
BGMEA vice-president Shahidullah Azim told New Age on Wednesday that following NBR instruction, almost 80 per cent UD certificates were now uploaded online and the process of online submission of UD certificates would complete by December.
BKMEA vice-president Mohammad Hatem said that they could not introduce online UD certificates submission due to technical problems.
BKMEA is now working with the BGMEA and hopefully the process will be completed by this month, he said adding that by January BKMEA will be able to submit UD certificates online.
-With New Age input
