Surge in Vehicle Import Revenue: Two Hundred Million Increase in Revenue

Four wheeler passenger vehicle imports through Birjung customs have surged nearly 8 percent during mid-July to mid-November review period, reports The Kathmandu Post. The vehicles (jeep, van, car) surged hit Rs. 3.81 billion this year. Last year that stats were only Rs. 3.53 billion in the same period.

Santosh Yadav, information officer at Birgunj Customs said that the rise imports could be due to the surge in demand of late.

Taking into reference the Birgunj Customs Office records, Nepal only imported 4,225 such vehicles during the same period last year whereas it imported 4,754 this year. With the surge, the revenue too increased from Rs. 7.4 billion to Rs. 7.62 billion.

The revenue collection on import vehicles is a major source of income for the government. The government collects up to 250 percent import duty on vehicles.

Birgunj is the shortest trade route to import vehicles from India. After the ban imposed by India, many traders switched to Bhairahawa Customs. However, the latest data shows that imports through the Birgunj customs have started to normalize.

Likewise, the records show that Nepal imported 65,411 two-wheelers worth Rs. 5.49 billion. Last year, at the same period, only 48,762 two-wheelers worth Rs. 4.13 billion were imported. With this, the revenue too increased from Rs. 4.26 billion to Rs. 5.49 billion.

Many importers avoid paying parking charges by parking the vehicles on Indian land instead of parking them on the premises of Birgunj Customs. It is estimated that there are nearly 5,000 Nepal-bound vehicles parked on the Indian side, waiting for customers to book the vehicles.