No ‘prior approvals’ needed for imports

The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has withdrawn the requirement for prior approval of imports aiming to clear the backlog of containers stuck-up at the port carrying industrial raw materials and other essentials. The SBP on Monday announced that no prior approvals would be required for making imports under HS code Chapters 84, 85 and certain items under HS code Chapter 87). Besides, the banks were instructed to prioritise the import of certain essential items like food, pharmaceutical, energy, etc. The decision was widely welcomed by the business community which has been demanding an immediate solution to the problem since demurrage charges exceeded the actual cost of imported goods. “The business community, including various trade bodies and chambers of commerce, have highlighted that a large number of shipping containers carrying imported goods are stuck up at the ports, due to delays in the release of the shipping documents by the banks,” said the SBP circular. The SBP has advised banks to provide one-time facilitation to all those importers who could either extend their payment terms to 180 days (or beyond) or arrange funds from abroad to settle their pending import payments.