The exorbitant and arbitrary increase by 1,000 percent since 1977 in the existing licence fee may kill the travel and tourism trades in the country.
Responding to the request made in July by the Department of Tourist Services, Pakistan, to submit its suggestions/comments on the proposed amendments to the Travel Agencies Act, 1976, the Travel Agents Association of Pakistan (Taap) has recommended that various fees for different field of operation be changed to "one" fee and brought to a reasonably sustainable level.
"Even otherwise the Department of Tourist Services carries no mandate to bring any amendments to the act. It is only the Travel Agencies Regulatory Committee, appointed by the Federal government, which among the many functions, has to perform, also advises the Federal government from time to time in respect of licence fees to be prescribed for various services rendered by the travel agencies," said the Taap.
It said the "deemed export status" was granted to the travel trade by the government of Pakistan in its national tourism policy announced in June 1990, which made the travel trade eligible for the same concessions.
"There is no progress in this direction and the trade continues to remain deprived of this facility," it pointed out.
Earlier, the export registration certificate for the export of thousands of items was granted with full five-year validity on payment of Rs 1,500 only, which too had been abolished completely.
As against this, each component of the travel trade activity had been subjected to the payment of exorbitant amount of licence fee, said the Taap
"Another move, which is irritating the existing Travel Agencies Act-1976 to the Travel Agents, Tour Operators and Tourist Transport Operators (Amendment) Act-2005. "The addition of Tourist Transport Operators is unnecessary because most of the travel agents and tour operators provide or arrange the transport as well.
The Taap said a definition of travel agent, tour operator and tourist transport operator proposed in the amendment makes an interesting reading.
-- A travel agent is one, who makes arrangements of tickets for travel by air, rail, road, sea, passport visa etc and other tourism related services.
-- A tour operator is one, who makes arrangements for transport, accommodation, sightseeing, trekking, entertainment, passport, visa and other tourism related services for tourists.
-- A tourist transport operator is one, who provides tourist transport like cars, coaches, boats etc to the tourists for transfers, sightseeing and journeys to tourist places etc.
The Taap said a close reading of the definition shows that the addition of tourist transport operators was not required as travel agents and tour operators also more or less perform the same functions.
The Taap had been forwarding proposals since last four years, which had been discussed at various meetings, but the outcome was awaited till to-date.
However, the Taap requested sufficient time till September 7 for submission of its comments on the proposed amendments.
The proposal relating to the new and additional field of operation, ie tourism transport operators for incorporation in the act and other issues required time to discuss the same with the Taap managing committee members.
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