KARACHI: MCC Exports Port Qasim has served detected a ring involved in evading government’s legitimate revenue through mis-declaration and fraudulently remove the goods from KEPZ premises.
A contravention has been served on M/s United International Industries, M/s IAS Trading and M/s Shan Corporation, M/s Vision Hub, M/s Glamour Fashion and M/s S.M Enterprises.
Collector Export Port Qasim Samina Wajid has initiated audit of all imports and clearance to verify misuse of the KEPZ facility causing loss to the exchequer. The team performing audit is headed by Additional Collector Mumtaz Khoso and comprising Assistant Collector KEPZ Zohaib Hassan Sandhila and others.
Units at KEPZ are allowed to import raw material and goods at concessionary rates but with the provision that the same had to be re-exported after value addition.
However, certain unscrupulous elements have been misusing the facility and illegally removing goods out of KEPZ.
According to details, M/s IAS Trading in connivance with investor M/s United International Industries filed a GD through their clearing agent M/s. Shan Corporation for clearance of goods from Karachi Export Processing Zone to Tariff Area. Similarly, M/s Glamour Fashion in connivance with investor M/s Vision Hub filed three GDs through their authorized clearing agent M/s. S.M. Enterprises for clearance of goods from Karachi Export Processing Zone to Tariff Area.
The importers gave vague declaration in the GD on the pretext of vague description of goods in the sales invoice issued by the investor M/s United International Industries. GD was filed by declaring that consignment was consisting of 30 MT of “Assorted Paper / Paper Board all sorts in Sheets / Rolls / Cartons /Pallets of assorted sizes / Prints / Coated / Color recovered from imported reject material / waste material. The importer attempted to seek clearance at lower values, however the GDs were reassessed under 2nd Appraisement and the importers accordingly paid duty / taxes on the assessed GDs.
However, when the goods were presented for examination under 2nd appraisement, the vague declaration of invoice and GD raised suspicion, and upon physical examination, the customs examination staff reported that the consignments also consisted of undeclared goods including “Aluminum Foil backed with paper” and BOPP plain film.
It is, therefore, evident that the accused deliberately used vague description in order to mis-declare the actual description, PCT and value of goods to evade duty / taxes on the actual assessable value of the goods and resultantly made an attempt to deprived the Government from its legitimate revenue.
The modus operandi of mis-declaration was such that the investors fraudulently issued invoice in the name of importers by using vague declaration to mis-declare actual description of goods and hiding the description of “Aluminum Foil backed with paper”. On the basis of said fraudulent /vague / misdeclared invoice, NOC was acquired from KEPZ for removal of mis-declared goods from KEPZ to the tariff area.
Legally, in the absence of NOC form KEPZ to remove “Aluminum Foil backed with paper”, M/s. United International Industries were not authorized to allow loading of said goods from their premises. However, as they were conniving with the importers, so said mis-declared goods were loaded in the three trucks to fraudulently clear the same without payment of leviable duty / taxes.