The Birgunj Customs Office has started imposing hefty fines on traders who attempt to produce fake bills in a bid to control the practice of underinvoicing.

According to customs officials, they have started slapping a fine equivalent to five times the amount shown on an undervalued customs clearance document. Similarly, the office has begun doing rigorous cross-checking of imported goods even after they have passed customs.

Last Thursday, the customs seized an Indian truck with registration number APO 4 U 3459 carrying smuggled textiles. The truck was said to be transporting UPS inverters, but officials found that it contained 37 bales of shirting and suiting fabrics on which customs duty had not been paid.

The owner of the contraband, Krishna Sah Kanu, is a resident of Inaruwa, Birgunj. Chief of Birgunj Customs Sewantak Pokharel said that the truck driver had been used to smuggle the textiles. The confiscated goods are worth Rs3.7 million.

Two months ago, a shipment of cotton thread worth Rs5.07 million that had cleared customs was found to contain other fibres during a second check. Pokharel said the customs office imposed a 500 percent cash penalty on the importer.

“If the importer had given correct information, he would have to pay only Rs950,000 in customs duty and VAT. However, the importer had to pay Rs26.3 million in fines for his offence,” he said.

Importers need to follow the Asycuda system (Automated System for Customs Data) for customs clearance which involves a customs check through green, yellow and red channels depending on the nature of the imported goods and the past history of the importer.

Goods that are allowed through the green channel do not need thorough checking while goods permitted through the yellow and red channels are rechecked even after they have passed customs clearance.

With the customs office becoming more stringent on illegal trade, smugglers

have been found to be using new approaches to avoid

paying tax.

Last month, the customs office itself purchased a batch of branded footwear and accessories worth Rs1.1 million at a discounted rate after the importer produced an undervalued bill for the goods.

The office has even started revaluating imported goods if it suspects the accompanying paperwork has been undervalued. Following the new measures, the customs office has collected additional revenue totalling Rs100 million in the last four months, said Pokharel.

With the Birgunj Customs cracking down on contraband, many importers are said to have been using alternative routes to transport their goods. Customs officials said that such traders had started using entry points in Bara, Rautahat and Sarlahi for the purpose.

Figures released by the Department of Customs show that trade has increased through these transit points.