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Our Mission |
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Our
mission is to achieve excellence in the formulation and implementation of
Customs initiatives. |
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These
initiatives are aimed at: ð Realizing
the revenues in a fair, equitable and efficient manner. ð Administering the Government’s economic,
tariff and trade policies with a practical and pragmatic approach. ð Facilitating
trade and industry by streamlining and simplifying Customs processes and
helping Indian business to enhance its competitiveness. ð Creating a
climate for voluntary compliance by providing guidance and building mutual
trust. ð Combating
revenue evasion, commercial frauds and social menace in an effective manner. |
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Our Commitment |
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We
shall carry out our tasks with ð Integrity and
judiciousness. ð Courtesy and understanding. ð Objectivity
and transparency. ð Promptness
and efficiency. |
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We
shall encourage and assist voluntary tax compliance by our clients. |
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Our Strategy |
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To
achieve our mission, we would focus on – ð Enhancing the
use of Information Technology. ð Streamlining Customs procedures. ð Encouraging
voluntary compliance. ð Evolving
co-operative initiatives. ð Assisting
in the formulation of Tariff policies. ð Combating
revenue evasion, commercial frauds and social menace effectively. ð Measuring
conformance to service delivery standards. ð Developing
professionalism and responsibility. |
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Enhancing the use of Information
Technology: |
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1. |
The
use of Information Technology has brought about a revolution in the manner in
which business operations are carried out throughout the world. More and more
operations are being carried out ‘on-line’, reducing the time taken and
taking the world towards ‘paperless’ operations. Thus, use of ‘Electronic
Data Interchange’ (EDI) has come to be accepted widely as the means of
interface between business partners as also Government agencies. |
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2. |
Indian
Customs is also committed to adopt this new deal so as to attain global
standards in speeding up flow of goods, thereby reducing the turn-around and
inventory carrying costs, imparting vital competitive edge to the Indian
trade and industry. |
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3. |
Building on the success of the pilot
EDI project at Delhi Air Cargo, we could seek to promote electronic commerce
and facilitate expeditious clearance of cargo through the following measures:
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a |
Automated processing of import and export
entries and cargo declarations, with least paper work and human intervention,
at the sea ports, airports, inland container depots, container freight
stations and land border stations. |
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b |
Enabling
EDI with businesses, shipping lines, airlines, carriers, customs agents,
custodians and other agencies concerned with cargo clearance and
international trade. |
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c |
Providing access to customs
electronic infrastructure to enable business partners to obtain information
required by them for making compliance. |
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d |
Computerization of all the other
Customs operations and management activities to provide better services to
our clients and enhance our performance. |
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4. |
Similarly, we envisage the following
measures for enhancing the use of information technology in our operations: |
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a |
Receipt and processing of excise
assessment returns electronically, through EDI, Internet and other means. |
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b |
Enabling the assessees to maintain
computerized records, issue computer generated invoices and file returns
electronically. |
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c |
Having an automated 'returns'
processing system to assist assessment and audit functions. |
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d |
Building a Management Information System
to assist policy making, monitoring of revenue trends and combating duty
evasion by developing assessee profiles. |
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Encouraging
Voluntary Compliance: |
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Compliance with tax laws is the shared responsibility of the tax
payer and the tax collector. Nevertheless, a tax system can be effective only
if it can systematically obtain voluntary compliance of the tax laws by the
assessees. To encourage voluntary compliance, the tariff levels should be
moderate, the procedures simple, and the cost burden of compliance minimal.
There should be certainty about the assessments made and duty liability so as
to eliminate retroactive burdens on the assessees. Further, we believe mutual
trust should be the foundation on which the relationship between us and our
clients are built. |
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To Win business confidence and create a climate for voluntary
compliance, we would institute the following measures: |
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1. |
Prior consultation with concerned trade
interests and field formations before introducing changes in laws and
procedures. |
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2. |
Having a system of advance rulings
on classification and valuation of goods and the applicability of specific
duty exemption schemes. |
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3. |
Improving the quality of service
and providing information to the trade and the tax payers by establishing
Guidance units at various Customs formations. Such Guidance Centers would
furnish information to the trade on issues of specific interest and also provide
general information regarding laws and procedures, and the admissibility of
benefits under various exemption schemes. |
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4. |
Make more effective use of Seminars
'Open Houses', Publicity materials, and Audio Visual Media for dissemination
of information. |
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5. |
Create a Website for CBEC on the
Internet and make available copies of Notifications and Circulars on line for
faster communication of information to Trade and field offices. Also provide
Inter-Active Telephone Help Lines. |
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6. |
Restructure the existing Grievance
Redressal Machinery by setting up an independent ombudsman at each Customs
Station. |
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7. |
Evolve a common business
identification number in place of separate identifiers being issued for
Customs purposes. |
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Evolving
Co-operative Initiatives |
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Customs |
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In the sphere of facilitation and regulation of International
trade several agencies apart from Customs, have a role to play. We believe
that trade with other countries can be enhanced only when these agencies act
in concert and mutual cooperation. Similarly, in the area of border control
we recognize the role of the Border Security Force and the Coast Guard. At the International level too, cooperation with the World
Customs Organization and the World Trade Organization to bring about greater
harmonization of Customs procedures and other trade related policies is
identified as a clear need. Another area where cooperation amongst various
countries involved in International Trade is called for is combating
commercial frauds and smuggling or narcotics. |
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The initiatives identified in order to achieve these
objectives are: |
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1. |
Establishing durable working partnership
with Airlines, Shipping Lines, Custodians and other Agencies and
Organizations involved in cargo clearance. |
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2. |
Evolving minimum standards through
mutual consultations with various Agencies to reduce delays in the release of
Import/Export Cargo (such as standards for time taken for filing of Manifests
by the carriers, prior notice of arrival of goods to importers, for filing of
goods declaration by Customs Agents, presentation of goods for examinations
by the custodian, etc.). |
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3. |
Co-operating with custodians at
airports in setting up separate facilities for clearance of express
consignments imported/exported through the courier mode. |
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4. |
Co-operating with State Governments
and other concerned agencies in developing and improving the infrastructure
facilities for clearance of cargo at land Customs stations and other inland
locations. |
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5. |
Evolving a uniform nomenclature based
on the Harmonized system for levy of Customs, export and import trade policy
and trade statistics. |
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6. |
Instituting and operating formal
consultative mechanism with Director General of Foreign Trade/Ministry of
Commerce for introducing or making changes in export and import trade
policies. |
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7. |
Entering into Mutual Administrative
Assistance Agreements with the Customs Administrations of other countries in
terms of the Nairobi Convention. |
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Streamlining
Customs Procedures |
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1. |
Customs procedures are perceived by
the trade as cumbersome involving time consuming documentation, scrutiny and
physical examination of goods, divergent practices and a high degree of individual
discretion, resulting in impediments to the smooth movement of trade and
acting against the interests of genuine importers, exporters and
manufacturers. Appreciating this concern we are committed to streamlining and
simplifying the procedure and setting a climate for voluntary compliance. The
introduction of electronic processing of documents also entails a change in
approach and re-engineering of Customs Processes based on selectivity, risk
assessment and reduced intervention. |
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2. |
We envisage the following measures
to achieve this objective: |
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Customs |
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1. |
Minimize pre-clearance scrutiny of
import/export declarations and examination of goods. |
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2. |
Introduce systems assessment i.e. without
any human intervention for specified commodities/identified importers and
exporters. |
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3. |
Introduce audit-based
post-clearance scrutiny for identified importers/exporters, industry groups.
Combine post-clearance audit for Customs in respect of manufacturer-importers/exporters
wherever possible. |
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4. |
Accept periodic declarations
instead of individual declarations for each consignment for identified
importers/exporters. |
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5. |
Introduce a system of deferred duty
payment for identified assessees subject to revenue safeguards. |
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6. |
Minimize physical examination of
goods by effectively using 'risk assessment' based targeting techniques. |
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7. |
Introduce a system of release of goods
even where the documentation is incomplete or there has been contravention of
Customs laws, subject to adequate safeguards. |
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8. |
Eliminate divergent practices in
the application of Customs laws and procedures at different Customs stations by
effective monitoring and analysis of the computerized database. |
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9. |
Move towards a single window
clearance wherever possible. |
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10. |
Provide 24 hours or 'extended time'
Customs clearance facility, wherever required. |
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11. |
Implement the provisions of
International Conventions on Customs techniques(Revised Kyoto Convention). |
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12. |
Examine all extant procedures and
eliminate those not compatible with trade facilitation. |
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13. |
Undertake a continual review of Customs
procedures so as to be responsive to changing situations. |
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Assisting in the formulation of Tariff Policies |
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Since 1991, several steps have been taken to lower import
tariffs and also reduce dispersion in the duty rates. Exemption schemes have
also been considerably rationalized. This is an on going process and to
enable the Government to take well considered decisions on the tariff/duties
levels as also other concessions, it is proposed to: |
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1. |
Undertake continual review of import tariffs, keeping in view
our international commitments (WTO bindings, if any) and their impact on
domestic production. |
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2. |
Conduct specific sectoral/commodity
studies for imposing safeguard duties, anti-dumping duties and the like, so
that domestic industry is able to raise its competitiveness. |
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Combating Revenue Evasion, Commercial Frauds and Social Menace
Effectively |
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Despite the trade liberalization and reduction in tariffs, the
problems of duty evasion through under evaluation, misdeclaration, misuse of
duty exemption schemes and other violations of laws including drug
trafficking would need to be addressed. There are still substantial monetary
advantages to encourage the ever growing number of economic offenders to
circumvent law. The modus-operandi of smuggling has also undergone
significant changes in step with the changing economic scenario and the
growing ingenuity of the operators. We propose the following measures to combat revenue evasion,
commercial frauds and social menace effectively: |
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Customs: |
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ð Make better
use of intelligence systems and emerging technologies:
ð Strengthen
the Directorate General of Revenue Intelligence so as to enhance its
capability in tackling commercial frauds. ð Strengthen
the Directorate of Valuation to enable it to provide information and guidance
to field formations on price-trends, commodities prone to under valuation,
suspect imports and modus-operandi relating to valuation frauds. |
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Measuring Conformance to service delivery standards |
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In the context of lubrication of trade, the service delivery
levels of the Customs Administrations have to be substantially enhanced. It
is accordingly proposed to first develop the standards for delivery of
service to the trading community; then evaluate performance of Administration
to bring about accountability. To improve the service delivery standards, the
initiatives we have in mind are: |
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1. |
Publication of Citizen's Charter,
setting out service standards. |
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2. |
Undertaking a survey of
satisfaction levels of traveling public passing through Customs at various
Ports, Airports and other border stations; also conduct survey of
satisfaction levels of businesses, industry and individuals involved in
manufacture and clearance of goods and institute measures to improve service
delivery conformance. |
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3. |
Undertake on on-going-basis an
assessment of the degree of conformance to standards and publish periodical
reports for the information of the trading community. |
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Developing Professionalism and Responsibility |
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Any system is as perfect as the human being behind it. It is
therefore, necessary that an important state holder is our realizing the
vision of the organization, namely our employees are motivated to deliver
their best. We believe that it is not merely enough that they are trained in
Customs procedures; they should be infused with the positive attitude,
empathy and an innate urge to help realize the desiderate of a responsive
Government. We envisage the following measures to bring about greater
professionalism in our approach and also raise the efficiency and
effectiveness of our work force: |
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1. |
Enhancing professionalism, skills
and technical knowledge, so that the officials are adequately informed about
their work and are ready to meet the expectations of those with whom they
deal. |
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2. |
Providing quality training to all
supervisory and managerial level officers in management techniques,
inter-personal relations, communication skill, conflict resolution, stress management,
attitude building and crisis management. |
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3. |
Ensuring
the highest level of integrity and Professional Standards within the service.
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