Containers and containerised cargo - Movement of - Customs - F. No. 434/17/94-Cus.IV

Containers and containerised cargo - Movement of F. No. 434/17/94-Cus.IV Dated 16-5-1994 Government of India Central Board of Excise Customs New Delhi Subject : Containers and containerised cargo - Movement of Attention of all exporters, importers members of the trade is invited to the following clarification given by the Board regarding movement of imported containers and containerised cargo. (i) Temporary importation of containers : Containers which are of durable nature and intended to be imported temporarily are exempt from the levy of Customs duties in terms of Notification No. 104/94-Customs, dated 16th March, 1994 subject to the condition of re-export within a period of six months from the date of importation and subject to other conditions specified in the notification. As per the existing practice, the clearance of containers whether empty or loaded, intended for temporary admission, is to be allowed without requirement of filing a formal Bill of Entry for each container separately. The party concerned should intimate the Customs the number and identification particulars of the containers to be moved outside the customs area. The Bond for such movement could be either for a specific individual consignment of containers or a general Bond covering a larger number of containers, as requested by the party. As regards the amount of Bond to be taken for permitting such containers to be moved out of the customs area temporarily, it is hereby clarified that the amount of Bond shall not exceed the Customs duty leviable on such containers in case these were not be re-exported within the stipulated time. The Bond amount will be taken as Rs. 20,000 for a 20 feet non-reefer container and the amount will be taken on prorata basis for different lengths of non-reefer containers. In case of default, however, duty would be leviable on actual calculations based on the value of the container and the rate of duty. The Customs Houses are quite grant extensions of the six months period provided for the export of the containers in Notification No. 104/94-Customs. Given the possibility of use of the containers for carriage of domestic cargo in view of the reported shortage of containers in the country, extension beyond the period of six months shall not be granted as a matter of routine. Where it becomes necessary to grant extension for justifiable reasons, such extension should not exceed six months. (ii) Movement of goods to Inland Stations : Presently the imported "dutiable goods" are moved from the port to inland stations under a Bond supported by a Bank Guarantee. In many cases the bank guarantee taken for the goods exceeds the amount of duty leviable on the goods. It is hereby clarified that where any imported goods are moved under Bond to inland destinations, the amount of bank guarantee shall not exceed the customs duty leviable on the goods. In this context, attention is invited to Board's instructions F. No. 473/25/90-Cus.VII, dated 30-9-1991 relating to transfer of imported goods for rewarehousing from ports to inland warehousing stations. The said instructions prescribe different amounts of bank guarantee related to the type of importers. (iii) Movement of stuffed containers from exporter's premises to ports : Regarding restrictions being placed on the mode of transport of containers stuffed at exporter's premises for moving to a port, an airport, an ICD or a CFS for export, it is hereby clarified that as per the existing practice there are no restrictions that such export containers stuffed at exporter's premises and sealed by Customs or Central Excise officers should move to a port, an airport, an ICD or a CFS for export by (a) any particular mode of transport or (b) only under the custodianship of a public sector entity.