The government has decided to allow Afghan transit trade through all the international airports of the country including the ports, according to a draft of the amendments to the Customs Rules shared with stakeholders by the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR).
According to documents, available with The Express Tribune, the transit trade consignments reaching the Pakistani airports will be dispatched to Chaman, Torkham and Ghulam Khan custom post via the land route for onward movement to Afghanistan.
In this regard, FBR has proposed important amendments to the Customs Rules 2001. FBR has also decided to introduce a mechanism for clearing the transit trade goods coming to international airports in Pakistan.
“FBR has shared the draft of amendments with the relevant stakeholders, seeking their input within 15 days. After that, the amended Customs Rules will be implemented through a Gazette notification,” read the documents.
It is stated in the draft that “Airlines bringing transit trade consignments must provide an air bill in which information about the type and quantity of goods must be provided. Only those goods that have been declared in the cargo manifest of the aircraft will be dispatched to border points.” The airline will also be required to submit the cargo manifest to the Directorate of Transit Trade at FBR, or to an authorised officer of the concerned Customs Collectorate. Similarly, the authorised cargo handlers of the airline have to separately declare the transit trade goods in the Import General Manifest (IGM).
