The lengthy and complicated export procedure to Afghanistan was badly affecting Pakistani export to the neighbouring country, sources in business community told Business Recorder on Monday.
According to the international procedure of exports require four kinds of documents like invoice, certificate of origin, packing list and Form E of a commercial bank.
However, for export to Afghanistan another document, properly known as Elm-e-Khabar issued by Afghan trade commissioner is also required. The document is actually the translation of the Pakistani invoice from English to Persian.
The document is the requirement of Afghan revenue department and each goods loaded truck requires a separate document.
The fee of each such document is $20. But, it also requires extra charges of about Rs 3,000 beside the wastage of the time of exporters. Pakistani exporters said that in case of the transportation of goods brought under Afghan Transit Trade (ATT) was okay but its levy on Pakistani export was totally unjustified.
They said that if Afghan government collected it in the name of revenue, then it should be collected after entrance into Afghanistan.
The second complication is created after the issuance of the Standing Order No 04/2004/7/4 by Pakistan Customs. According to the order Pakistani exporter would have to get a Triplicate copy of the shipping bill at Customs Station Torkham.
This copy would contain document like zero rated sales tax and duty drawback and foreign exchange.
The document along with the export goods return to Torkham customs station after verification by Pakistan embassy in Kabul and in case of Jalalabad bound goods the concerned consulate is required to verify the documents.
The processes are very lengthy and complicated takes time from one week to ten days and in return the exporters require waiting for the recovery of the document at Torkham.
Chairman of Frontier Customs Agents Group, Zia-ul-Haq Sarhadi when contacted by Business Recorder said that during this period 200 to 300 of shipping bills are filed at Torkham station as daily average.
The presence of such a large number of shipping bills complicated the search of the document and in case of the loss of the document, an exporter had to suffer million of rupees loss, which was due in the head of duty drawback and sales tax, he added.
Similarly, the exporters also have to re-collect the Form E, which involved foreign exchange and they had to return it to the bank concerned within three to four days, he said.
He was of the view that due to this lengthy and complicated procedure exports through Pak-Afghan border at Chaman, Baluchistan were on decline and the imposition of this complicated procedure at Torkham would also play havoc there.
The procedure was badly affecting the exports and if the situation remained same the country would have to loss of foreign exchange worth millions of rupees.
Sarhadi demanded of government to allow free trade with Afghanistan like that adopted by the governments of India, China and Iran.
He said that these neighbouring states besides giving other incentives to their exporters also gave duty drawback and subsidies.