By Steve Agbota
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), yesterday debunked allegations of accepting the introduction of e-invoicing and e-valuator policy by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) for import and export trades.
Recall that the CBN in a letter dated July 8, 2021 informed the NCS that they are deploying a mechanism for the verification of prices of goods before allocation of forex at the point of e-form M registration.
CBN said the policy in summary seeks to benchmark the price of imported and exported cargo.
In a statement signed on Thursday by the national spokesman of the NCS, Timi Bomodi, the Service denied claims in some sections of the media that it has already accepted the introduction of the new CBN policy.
“It has come to our attention that there are reports, suggesting the NCS has acquiesced to the introduction of the e-valuator and e-invoicing for import and export businesses in Nigeria by CBN. We wish to state that this is incorrect.
“The Service still stands by its earlier submissions on the matter, as was clearly communicated to the House of Representatives Joint Committee on Customs and Excise, Banking and Currencies on March 3, 2022,” Bomodi said.
He said the move has raised objections from critical stakeholders within and outside the industry who have expressed valid concerns that require critical considerations, adding that the practice all over the world is to domicile adjudication on Customs values for import and export within the Customs administration of every country.
He explained that the NCS, undoubtedly, is alive to its statutory functions and has a vibrant Valuation Unit under the Tariff and Trade Department whose roles among others includes the proper interpretation of WCO/WTO rules and agreements concerning the valuation of goods.
“Nigeria being a member of the World Customs Organisation (WCO), World Trade Organisation (WTO) and also signatory to international trade treaties, including Article VII of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade is constrained to abide by the principles contained therein.
“The NCS as a government agency aligns with the WTO Agreement on Customs Valuation (ACV) as it aims for a fair, uniform and neutral system for the valuation of goods for Customs purposes. This conforms to commercial realities, and outlaws the use of assumed values for customs purposes.
“It is our view that the use of benchmarking in valuation as proposed by the CBN policy will negate the aim of the ACV and result in disputes, delays and uncertainties,” he said.