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Message: <blockquote data-quote="lkdood" data-source="post: 8432844" data-attributes="member: 92282">Fearing changes in import taxes on vehicles in next month’s budget, the  Customs Department with limited officials at its imports section has  been swamped with around 400 to 500 applications to clear vehicles in  recent days.According to Sri Lanka Customs data, vehicle imports have risen  sharply after import duties were slashed in June this year with around  450 to 500 vehicles being cleared daily by Customs.                        “Customs officers are having a hard time to  tackle the heavy rush of representatives of vehicle importers and wharf  clerks who are in a hurry to clear the vehicles,” one official at the  imports section said on Tuesday.                       The reason for the rush may be the heavy  importation of vehicles by importers anticipating a tax hike in the 2011  budget.  But the Ministry of Finance and Planning announced that there  will not be any revision to the tax relief given to import motor  vehicles and other related items.                        A senior official said Customs has extended  the time period for clearance of goods and accordingly, clearance  operations would take place until 8 pm on week days and till 4 pm on  weekends.  The aim of this move is to expedite the clearance of motor  vehicles, he said adding that at present clearing of goods stops at 4 pm  on weekdays and on weekends the offices are closed, he said.                       The government slashed the taxes on car  imports by 50% with effect from June 1 in response to the request of the  importers who lamented that vehicle imports had come down by 90% last  year due to high taxes levied. One of the objectives of reducing import  tax was to raise tax revenue by encouraging more vehicle imports.  Earlier cars were subjected to as much as 300% tax through excise  duties, import duties, value added taxes, port and airport development  levies and national security levies in addition to the 15% surcharge on  all imported items.                       Tax revenues from vehicle imports have risen  sharply by more than three-fold after the import duties on vehicles were  slashed, Director-General for Fiscal Policy of the Ministry of Finance  and Planning S.R.Attygalle told the Business Times.                       He said the government has earned around Rs.6.2  billion up to September since July this year after import taxes were  slashed. Vehicle import tax revenue in July alone was Rs.1.7, August  Rs.2 billion and September around Rs.2.5 billion, he said.                        A large number vehicles have already imported  resulting in a heavy rush at the customs for clearing it by paying  taxes, he said. The government earned only about Rs. 500 million in May,  before the tax cut.                        The Motor Traffic Department said import of  cars has increased significantly with the reduction of vehicle import  duty.  According to Department statistics, 5,762 cars were registered by  the Department last year while the Department registered more than  4,079 cars up to August 1 this year. The department expects the total  number of new cars to be increased by upto around 8,648 this year from  last year, a Department source said.  A record number of 185,595 new  motor vehicles have been imported during the first seven months of this  year, he said. <a href="http://sundaytimes.lk/101010/BusinessTimes/bt01.html" target="_blank">st</a></blockquote>

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