NBR issues gazette to process imports faster

The National Board of Revenue (NBR) has issued a gazette notification stipulating that imports have to be declared well in advance of the previous deadline for notifying of their arrival, all to reduce false declarations and enable quick releases.

Earlier, the import general manifest (IGM), a document containing detailed information about the cargo being carried on a vessel or an aircraft, had to be submitted 24 hours prior to its arrival into the country.

But according to Pre-Arrival Processing Rules-2024 for Imported Goods, which was issued on March 24 and came into immediate effect, the IGM has to be submitted 24 hours prior to the vessel departing the last port for Bangladesh.

Any required amendment can be made by the importer or shipping agent within 24 hours of filing the IGM, Mohammad Fyzur Rahman, commissioner of Chattogram Customs House, told The Daily Star.

The new provision will help importers obtain clearance for products of the general category, excluding those requiring further clearance or high VAT payments, by paying customs duty before the goods enter the country.

The practice has always been more common at the country's sea ports and airports and much less at the country's 26 land and rail ports, according to the NBR officials.

"Custom officials and C&F (clearing and forwarding) agents voluntarily submit the IGM before goods enter the land port but it was not fully effective," a land port commissioner, speaking on condition of anonymity, told The Daily Star.

"Now both countries will have some designated agents at the customs stations who will declare what goods are coming. It will be easier to release goods and detect irregularities," he said.

"An initiative is underway to give opportunities to some of C&F agents to file such IGMs…It may take a few months to fully implement these issues across the country," he said.