As a part of recent budgetry measures, hi-tech industry in Pakistan has been exempted from whole of customs duty as per an announcement made here on Tuesday by Central Board of Revenue.
SRO 369(I)/2000, dated June 17, 2000, allows exemption on import of process control equipment/systems; power tools, pneumatic tools; powder metallurgical industry and manufacture of alloys and stainless steel; information technology; solar technology/solar cell industry; aerospace; defence production; hermetical sealed (HS) technology; oil refining (mineral)/ hydrocracking and other value-added petroleum products.
Total exemption from customs duty has also been allowed under the SRO to the following value-added industry attaining a minimum value addition of 40 per cent of production value to be determined by Engineering Development Board, National Tariff Commission, CBR, Board of Investment, ministry of industry, or, on export of minimum average 50% of its production in the first 10 years: leather; textile; footwear; surgical and sports goods; carpets; electronics; soft/stuffed and battery toys; frozen concentrated citrus juices; seafood industry (farming/catching, processing and preservation of fish, shrimp and other marine products; mining or value-added mineral processing (incentives admissible depending upon level of value-addition in accordance with the criteria specified); any industry other than indicated here also shall be entitled to same facility provided it fulfils the criteria.
The notification also exempts from above-10% duty on their imports by the following priority/agro-based engineering and capital goods industry: manufacture of industrial plants, machinery and equipment including mining or mineral processing, agricultural and earthmoving machinery; valves and controls for fluids and gas, high pressure/temperature piping and fittings, specialized pumps for chemical/petroleum industry; elevators or escalators; passenger and goods carriages, locomotives; turbines; ship-building; seamless high pressure gas cylinders; compressors.
The duty has been reduced to 10% on the following chemical items: rubber and textile chemicals/dyes/pigments; specialized paints or coatings; basic manufacture of pesticides, pharmaceutical raw materials, manufacture of basic chemicals, fire-fighting foam; petrol-chemicals and their downstream products (including fibres); chloro-alkali; fertilizers; pulp and paper (integrated unit); development and production of fibre-optic communication equipment; treatment and disposal of toxic and hazardous/industrial wastes, sewerage, effluent/solid waste management, water supply; laboratory, chemical or industrial waste; optical goods and equipment; X-ray and photographic films; manufacture of bio-medical/medical diagnostic equipment/devices; research and development/technical testing facilities.
On the agro-based industry's following items, the duty has been reduced to 10%: production of quality/hybrid seeds; edible oil extraction/refining; livestock/poultry food; integrated poultry, livestock complex.
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