To deter technical smuggling, the Bureau of Customs (BOC) can now confiscate imported goods found undervalued.
Customs Administrative Order (CAO) No. 16-2019 signed by Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III and Customs Commissioner Rey Leonardo B. Guerrero reflected the provision of the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act (Act) putting in place the government’s right of compulsory acquisition.
The BOC said CAO 16-2019 would apply to all imported products suspected to be undervalued, including consumption, warehousing, transshipment, consolidated goods and postal items.
The compulsory acquisition power will not only “protect government revenues in instances where there is substantial basis to make a finding that the imported goods are undervalued” but also “deter importers from underdeclaring the value of their imported goods.”
Under CAO 16-2019, the BOC Commissioner has the “sole authority to exercise, motu proprio, or upon the recommendation of the district collector” compulsory acquisition.
The BOC said a commodity was deemed to be valued “unconscionably low” whenever it “finds a discrepancy of at least 30 percent in the value declared as against other reference” after applying all valuation methods.The BOC Commissioner can issue a notice of compulsory acquisition (NCA) “upon determination that the goods are valued unconscionably low.”
District collectors’ recommendations for issuance of NCAs should be acted upon by the BOC chief within 48 hours or 24 hours in the case of perishable products.
The seized items will be placed within a BOC facility while it conducts compulsory acquisition proceedings within three working days following NCA issuance, then must issue a decision, at most, after five working days.
If the BOC Commissioner deemed that the shipment’s value was unconscionably low, the official can issue a warrant of compulsory acquisition to the importer, who may still appeal the decision to the Department of Finance Secretary, as well as the Court of Tax Appeals as last resort. –BEN O. DE VERA INQ