Minister says plan afoot to regularise NCP vehicles

NOWSHERA: Minister for Excise, Taxation and Narcotics Control Mian Khaliqur Rahman said on Sunday that the provincial government had sent recommendations to the federal government for the regularization of non-custom paid vehicles as per the apex committee decision.

Talking to reporters, he said that his department had already compiled the data of over 1,13,908 non-custom paid (NCP) vehicles in Malakand division and merged tribal districts to bring them into the tax net.

He said the department had already recommended an amnesty for the owners of NCP vehicles and proposed custom duty on such vehicles, but the final decision would be taken by the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR).

He advised the owners to avail this opportunity and register their vehicles with the department, saying the exercise would also help boost the economy in terms of taxes to the national and provincial kitties.

The minister said that there will be no further waivers for the owners of NCP vehicles and termed it a last chance for them to avail.He claimed that the NCP vehicles in Malakand Division and tribal districts also posed a security threat as a non-custom paid vehicle was used in the attack on Chinese engineers recently.

The use of NCP vehicles, he added, also a major challenge to the security departments as the personnel faced greater hardships due to non-registration of their automobiles to trace them.He said the owners, who availed the scheme would not be allowed to sell vehicles for the next five years.

He said that for vehicles with up to 800c engines, it proposed the custom duty of Rs100,000 each for income tax filers along with Rs15,000 registration fee. Similarly, Rs200,000 custom duty was proposed for vehicles up to 1000cc capacity along with registration fee of 20,000, and the custom duty of Rs350,000 along with Rs60,000 registration fee on vehicles up to 1500cc capacity.

He said that vehicles up to 2000cc, the excise department also suggested Rs450,000 in custom duty and Rs80,000 registration fee, on vehicles up to the proposed custom duty was Rs550,000 and registration fee of Rs100,000 and those above 2500cc, Rs700,000 in custom duty and Rs200,000 in registration fee.