By Steve Agbota
The President, National Council of Managing Directors of Licensed Customs Agents (NCMDLCA), Lucky Amiwero, has petitioned the Federal Government over the imposition of 15 per cent Common External Tariff (CET) levy on imported vehicles by the Nigeria Customs Service(NCS).
Amiwero described the 15 per cent CET on imported vehicles by Customs as illegal, which is not backed by any law in the country.
Amiwero, in a letter addressed to President Muhammadu Buhari, said the 15 percent CET levy on motor vehicles is in contravention of the Finance Act of 2020 and other domestic law on import duties and levies.
According to him, the only approval for levy for ‘motor vehicles of 8703 Cars is five percent by the National Assembly and signed in to law by the President.’
While calling for urgent intervention of the President on the matter, Amiwero said as a result of the confusion of the shift from NAC levy of 15 per cent to CET levy of 15 per cent without any backed legislation, many vehicles are now abandoned at the port, accumulating demurrage and rents, thereby creating serious bottleneck to revenue collection and impediment to trade.
The letter reads in part: “We wish to bring to the attention of the Federal government on the imposition of common External Tariff (CET) levy of 15 per cent on Motor vehicles that is not backed by any law or approved in the Finance Act of 2020 and 2021 and not provided in any law of the land and assessed on Motor Vehicles by Nigeria Customs Service (NCS)
“There is no such thing as Common External Tariff (CET) levy of 15 per cent either on Motor vehicles or goods, the only approval is on ECOWAS trade liberalization levy (ETLS) of 0.5 per cent, the introduction of CET LEVY is strange to our domestic law and the ECOWAS convention on Import duties and levies assessment and collection.
“The levy approved in the Finance Act 2020 approved for Motor Vehicles specifically state as follows: Amendment of the first Schedule to the Act is amended by inserting and replacing as the case may be the following duties and levies: Duty on Tractors (Heading 8701) From 35 per cent to 5 per cent and Duty on Motor Vehicles for the Transportation of more than ten persons (HS Heading 8702) From 35 per cent to 10 per cent,” he said.