Press briefing of Cabinet Decision taken on 2019-10-15

Policy Framework for appointing of Private Customs Bonded Warehouses under section 69 of the Customs Ordinance (Chapter 235)

- A policy framework for appointing of Public Customs Bonded Warehouses has been in operation since the year 2016. Furthermore, in terms of the budget proposals 2016 the requirement of the minimum floor area imposed for any new public or private warehouse as well as the existing ones is 50,000 sq.ft. However, the existing bondsmen and as well as the entrepreneurs who expect to establish Private Customs Bonded Warehouses have expressed their unwillingness in that regard pointing out that the floor area requirement of the bonded warehouses should be dependent on the nature of the business. Accordingly, the proposal made by the Minister of Finance to empower the policy framework laid down under section 69 of the Customs Ordinance (Chapter 235) for establishing private bonded warehouses enabling the relevant limit of sq.ft. of the floor area to be valid further for the Public Customs Bonded Warehouses only and enabling the Director General of Customs to determine the number of sq.ft. area to be imposed in a Private Customs Bonded Warehouse, in accordance with the nature of the business and enabling the local authorities to construct warehouses to suit their requirements, was approved by the Cabinet.