Grant of exemption from payment of cost recovery charges for Customs staff posted at Seaports, Air Cargo Complexes, Courier Terminal
REFERENCES have been received by the Board requesting for fixation of norms for waiver of payment of cost recovery charges for Customs staff posted at Seaports, Air Cargo Complexes, Courier Terminal, etc. in like manner of the norms in force for ICDs/CFSs.
Board informs that the matter was examined and a view emerged that in the manner of ICDs/CFSs other Customs facilities - Seaports, Air Cargo Complexes, Courier Terminals and Diamond Plazas - would merit similar exemption from the payment of cost recovery charges for the Customs staff posted therein once they satisfy certain performance criteria that confirm their continued viability. The Board also noted that the Ministry of Civil Aviation's Greenfield Airport Policy required the Airport operators to pay the cost recovery charges for the Customs staff (amongst others). However, the Board observed that unlike ICDs/CFSs the staffing norms for these other Customs facilities including Airports had not been finalized. In this background, the Board constituted a Committee of Chief Commissioners of Customs to recommend the norms for staffing of the Customs staff at the various Customs facilities. The Committee of Chief Commissioners was also entrusted with the task of identifying the performance benchmarks that would make a particular facility eligible for the grant of exemption from the payment of cost recovery charges for the Customs staff posted therein.
Based on the report of the Committee of Chief Commissioners, the Board has obtained the approval of the Competent Authority for the staffing norms for sanction of posts on cost recovery basis at various Customs facilities and also for the performance norms that would make a facility eligible for consideration of grant of exemption from the payment of cost recovery charges.
The facility-wise ( Sea Port, Air Cargo Complexes, Courier Terminals and Diamond Plaza ) staffing norms for the posting of Customs staff on cost recovery basis as well as the norms for eligibility for grant of exemption from payment of cost recovery charges for such Customs staff have been detailed in the Circular.
The conditions for grant of exemption from payment of cost recovery charges for all facilities viz. Sea Ports, Air Cargo Complexes, Courier Terminals, Diamond Plazas and Airports are -
(a) Both performance norms i.e. volume/value and number of documents in case of Sea Ports, Air Cargo Complexes, Courier Terminals, Diamond Plazas and number of international flights and number of passengers in case of Airports must be met in each of the preceding two financial years.
(b) Exemption from cost recovery charges shall be prospective; and
(c) No cost recovery charges should be outstanding.
Board has also decided that based upon the aforementioned norms, jurisdictional Commissioners would review the existing facilities and send proposals to the DG, HRD, CBEC for waiver of cost recovery charges for eligible facilities within 60 days. And that similar review would be undertaken in April each year and so on and so forth.
It is also mentioned that Difficulties faced, if any, in implementation of the Circular should be brought to the notice of the Board.
Circular no. dated 10 th April, 2013.