Goods transported through Pakistani territory: FBR seeks to levy transit fee

The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) seeks powers to levy a transit fee on goods or class of goods in transit to other countries across Pakistan. According to the analysis of Ernst & Young Ford Rhodes Sidat Hyder on finance bill 2011, the bill seeks to add a new Section '129A' to empower the Board to levy transit fee on goods or class of goods in transit to other foreign countries across Pakistan.
The transit activity has increased the operations and related cost of customs department. The proposed levy is expected to provide revenue to mitigate costs related to services at customs stations and for maintenance of other infrastructure used for such activity.
Regarding refund claims, section 33 provides a time limit of one year from the date of payment, to claim refund of any duty paid through inadvertence, error or misconstruction. However, the new proposal is to add a new sub section (3) in Section 33, which prescribes that the time limit of one year for claim of refund in consequence of any decision or judgement shall be calculated from the date of issuance of such decision or judgment. In another amendment, the bill seeks to delete the superfluous word "Deputy Collector" appearing in Section 22, 34 and 96.
The finance bill seeks to make certain changes in the First Schedule, aiming to rationalise the tariff on bars, rods, profiles of refined copper, copper alloy, betaine, and others. The bill also seeks to add a new sub PCT heading in Chapter 87.10 to levy customs duty at 20 percent on armoured cash-carrying vehicles.
The bill also seeks to make correction in the description of PCT heading 9918 by replacing the word "goods" with "machinery" wherever appearing. The word "goods" was used interchangeably with the word "machinery" but the proposed amendment is aimed to clarify that the customs duty at the rate of 0 % is applicable to machinery which has been re-imported by an industrial concern after having been exported without undergoing any process outside Pakistan since their exportation.