TRA Gets Tough on Used Car Importers

LazyDog · 2009-12-08T09:14:52+00:00

Sorry for posting this if it is old News. Was it January this year or it is next year ? (See below) THE TANZANIA Revenue Authority (TRA) has launched a major crackdown on importers of four-wheel-drive cars recently brought into the country and suspected to have evaded paying authentic taxes. A source at TRA confirmed on October 18 that the operation to net such suspected cars, particularly those recently registered, began in September. "Some businessmen have been arrested," he said. He said that most importers of Mercedes Benzes and Toyota VXs evade paying duty. "After perusing the Customs clearing documents, TRA has discovered that many of the vehicles were undervalued, thus calling for investigation. We think the government has lost a substantial amount of revenue," he said. While the crackdown continues, a number of steps have been taken by the government to check tax evasion and the dumping in the country of used motor vehicles, particularly from Japan and Dubai. The Tanzania Motor Services Association (TMSA) has supported the government's move to introduce mandatory inspection of imported second-hand vehicles. The executive secretary of TMSA, Mr Jacob Kemishambwa, said on October 17 that TMSA supported the move by the government because apart from a number of problems, some unscrupulous second-hand vehicle dealers evaded taxes by cheating on the real age and value of the cars, which they later sold at higher prices. He was responding to last week's notice by the Tanzania Bureau of Standards (TBS) that it was finalising arrangements to ensure that all second-hand vehicles imported into Tanzania undergo road worthiness inspection and certification in the countries of origin effective January 1. "The motor industry supports the move by the government because Tanzania has been turned into a dumping ground for used cars," he said, adding that some of the the imported vehicles had no spare parts and their running costs were higher than those of new cars. Mr Kemishambwa said that Tanzania was currently registering between 250,000 and 300,000 saloon cars, 60-100 mini-buses, 60-70 mini-buses and 20-40 trucks (3.5 tonnes) every month, most of them used. "This number is on the high side," he said. According to Mr Kemishambwa, used cars are difficult to value because exporters in Dubai and elsewhere tampered with engine numbers to enable under-declaration at the point of destinations. "Importation of used vehicles is one of the major means to evade taxes," he said. He said that despite the fact that importation of used cars was a global problem. "It had become a serious problem in East Africa in the absence of strict laws in the motor industry that deter dumping." TBS has said it has already certified the Japan Auto Appraisal Institute (JAAI) to conduct the inspection on behalf of TBS on all used or reconditioned vehicles imported from Japan. JAAI will be issuing certificates of roadworthiness and certificates of appraisal. Japanese vehicles imported through Dubai will also be required to undergo a similar certification of roadworthiness as well as certification of appraisal from JAAI, as most cars from Dubai are Japanese makes. TBS said that effective January 1 next year, importers would have to present two documents to the Customs department: the certificate of roadworthiness and certificate of appraisal issued by JAAI showing retail price, model, year of first registration, engine capacity and mileage. According to TBS the exercise was intended to restrict importation of sub-standard used vehicles, help the government to determine the true value of used vehicles and checking on stolen ones. The government is further making arrangements to co-operate with counterpart institutions abroad such as traffic police divisions and the Tanzania-based pre-shipment inspection company, Cotecna, to ensure that importers complied with the new regulations before the vehicles reach the Tanzania market. One used vehicle importer said that his company would adhere to government decisions, but was optimistic that most imported used cars would qualify for importation. By FAUSTINE RWAMBALI SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT SOURCE: http://www.berksautos.co.tz/news_reviews.php?subaction=showfull&id=1223905299&archive=&start_from=&ucat=2&

Thread starter LazyDog
Start date Dec 8, 2009

LazyDog

JF-Expert Member

Dec 8, 2009

Kigogo

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TRA Gets Tough on Used Car Importers

LazyDog

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