Chybar calls for import fee reforms
Published:Tuesday | December 17, 2024 | 12:08 AMAlbert Ferguson/Gleaner Writer
WESTERN BUREAU:
Westmoreland Chamber of Commerce and Industry President Moses Chybar is calling for a comprehensive review of the fee structure imposed on imported goods, arguing that a more equitable system would offer more benefits to large and small importers.
Chybar, the CEO of Icon Importer and Distributors Limited, was speaking at his company’s 25th Anniversary Evening of Excellence Gala Dinner and Awards Banquet in Negril, Westmoreland, on Saturday.
He said the current system creates an uneven playing field for businesses of different sizes, noting that the varying fee structures based on the value and type of goods imported can disproportionately impact businesses.
“Let’s develop a structure where we charge a flat rate per container, so if it’s a 20-foot container, $1 million; if it’s a 40-foot container, $2 million, or whatever you may come up with. Name a figure [and] do some math to arrive at a cost,” said Chybar.
The Westmoreland businessman said such a method will ensure that cost per container is treated equally, suggesting that it will allow the Jamaica Customs Agency (JCA) to just focus on whether the contents of a container are prohibited or require permits.
“That way, we will all pay the same duty on a container; therefore, we (importers) must now load a container in such a way that the value works out for us based on the duty structure,” said Chybar, whose company is based in Paradise, Westmoreland.
“If we do that, the Government of Jamaica will earn far more revenue. They can predict and project their revenue much easier than they do now because, as a country, not only us at the local level in business, but the Government is losing out big time on revenue from importers,” the businessman noted.
In supporting his argument on the level of disproportionate imposition of duties on imported goods, Chybar said the JCA may not have the manpower and that it might be virtually impossible to vet every invoice and double-check whether they reflect the right value.
“As legitimate importers, over the years, one of the issues we struggle with is the high financial cost we pay in customs duties, where, for example, if you import a container of garbage bags, valued at roughly $50,000, the duty plus general consumption tax (GCT) on that is close to $4 million, but other importers will present an invoice for $15,000 and pay far less duty,” said Chybar.
“Let’s face it, thousands of containers are coming in, so that module makes the playing field uneven, and those who are legitimate in the way they do business will get shafted,” he added.