CONTAINERISED cargo imports will from December 1 undergo mandatory Container Freight
Station nomination by the Kenya Ports Authority. This follows a government move to enforce a scheme aimed at curbing tax evasion and
entry of sub-standard goods into the country. Under
the new rule that come’s effective in two weeks, KPA will have the
sole mandate of nominating freight containers to designated CFSs. It
will replace the current arrangement where Kenya-bound shippers and carriers would endorse
specific stations.
In
a public notice on Friday, KPA managing director Gichiri Ndua said all local
import containers including shippers nominated, must be manifested to the CFS
nominated by the authority. “All shippers, agents and shipping lines are
therefore required to comply with this new government directive and ensure that
shipping documents including manifests and Bill of Ladings are not endorsed to specific
CFSs,” Ndua said.
According
to Ndua, KPA will process the nomination to the appointed gazetted CFS’s using
an agreed distribution criteria. Detailed
guidelines and standard operating procedures for the directive are to be
circulated today, Ndua said. A
CFS is a port facility for loading and unloading containerised cargo to and
from ships. KPA
entered into an agreement with private CFS’s in 2011 to help decongest the port,
where CFS operators are required to clear cargo within 48 hours after being
discharged from a vessel.
Last
year, the authority banned private CFSs and shades from operating within the
port’s premises, forcing them to invest outside. The
government has outlined a four-month programme that also includes fresh vetting of all the registered 22 CFS’s in Mombasa and
installation of approved stock management systems. A fortnight ago, KRA commissioner general John Njiraini said self nomination was
being used “to look for ways of evading tax”. According
to Njiraini, the new measures are expected to cover tax loopholes which have denied
KRA VAT on imports, Import Declaration Fees and the Railway Development Levy.
As
at the end of October, VAT on imports was Sh47.2 billion against a four-month target
of Sh54.9 billion, (July-October).The
Railway Development Levy brought in Sh6.2 billion against a target of Sh9
billion. He said KRA is working with the Kenya Bureau of
Standards on pre-export verification of conformity, to counter wrong
declaration and undervaluation of goods.
Source: The Star

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of TradeMark Africa.