According to the Import Policy Order, 2022, it is permissible to import vehicles under the Personal Baggage, Transfer of Residence, or Gift schemes exclusively for expatriate Pakistanis who have not imported, gifted, or received a vehicle within the previous two years.
The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has provided the Federal Tax Ombudsman (FTO) with a report concerning the issue of vehicle certification delays caused by Pakistanis residing abroad and the improper utilization of immigration data.
It has been suggested that passport data becomes accessible subsequent to GD filing, which is then sold openly on the market by a select few individuals in car groups, causing severe losses for the original importer. This is a prevalent criminal activity, and duplicate PRCs are issued by banks. The safeguarding of this critical information pertaining to Overseas Pakistanis is the responsibility of the Directorate of Reforms & Automation.
The FTO has instructed the Director, Directorate of Reforms & Automation, Karachi to develop and deploy e-CRF sent by the Collectorate of Customs, Appraisement (West), Karachi, which enables the assessing officer to verify that the same importer who imported a vehicle under the Baggage, Transfer of Residence, and Gift Scheme on his old passport within the last two years does not submit a GD on a new passport.
The aforementioned complaint was lodged under Section 10(1) of the Federal Tax Ombudsman Ordinance, 2000 (FTO Ordinance) against the Chief Collector, Appraisement (South), Karachi, and the Director, Directorate of Customs, Reforms & Automation, Karachi. The grounds for the complaint were the improper handling of immigration data and the delay in the clearance of vehicles belonging to overseas Pakistanis.
A representative from the Collectorate’s department stated during the hearing that individuals residing outside Pakistan who have not imported, gifted, or received a vehicle within the previous two years are eligible to import vehicles under the Personnel Baggage Scheme, Transfer of Residence, and Gift Scheme, subject to the proviso to Paragraph (2) of Appendix-E of the Import Policy Order, 2022.
Additionally, it was specified that the WeBOC system prohibits the submission of GDs if another GD is submitted within two years using the same passport number. There is no verification, however, that a GD has been filed on the new passport.
Regarding new passports, the Collectorate of Customs, Appraisement (West) has already transmitted e-CRF to the Directorate of Reforms & Automation, Karachi for the incorporation of supplementary checks into the WeBOC system. The FTO order further stated that this system enhancement will permit the assessing officer to verify that the importation of vehicles complies with the IPO’s provisions.
