Investment
Investment is practical and technical action aims at development and advancement of countries rich in resources which encourage capital owners to invest confidently.
The relation between Customs and investor is a relation of partnership to puch investment processes for strategic and non strategic projects so as to achieve sustainableble development. Customs was considered as the implementing party which introduces its services for investors after been granted the required license, this represented in the revision and ratification of list of demands and completion of exemptions and concession application procedures granted for investor according to the provisions of laws and Customs merits.
Role of Customs in investment:
Customs Authority has the big role in investment promotion and enforcement of industry capacity for competition in order to raise national economy efficiency through implementation of investment promotion act which aims at achieving development goals and investment initiatives by Sudanese private sector and cooperative mixed and general sectors according to national and state policies.
Customs Authority implements the merits stated in Investment promotion act and its executive regulation These procedures applied by coordination with Investment promotion commission in Khartoum state through specific procedures.
Investor procedures:
- Investor procedures begin by introducing of application to the ministry of investment or the state ministry for licensing establishment of a new project according to the provision of the law, this conducted through a definite form in which complete information about the investor is registered (Name, address, Nationality, type of investment, field of agriculture, industry, services, mining … etc).
- Type of capital also should be defined (foreign – local) and finance resources – type of workers (foreign – local). The required merits and facilitation in addition to attachment of economic and technical visibility study of the project.
- The Ministry of Investment examine the application to ensure that it includes all the essential information and consequently issue the agree to grant the license.
- The license granted to the investor declaring the preferential merits for tragic and nonstrategic projects certified from the Ministry of Investment in coordination with all other different technical parties according to the type of project .
Single window in the Ministry of Investment:
Single window trial in the ministry of investment was a successful experiment where representative from all official parties concerned by investment procedures gather in the ministry location (Customs –Taxation – passports, labour – transport and communication – agriculture – industry -Tourism – foreign trade ) so that will facilitate and simplify all the procedures.
The spontaneous merits:
- Capital goods such as machines, Instruments and tools used for industrial and agricultural production were subject to complete exemption from Customs duties (import duty) in Customs tariff schedule.
- Capital goods exempted from Customs duties in Customs tariff schedule were also exempted from value added tax.
- Industrial production inputs were subject to duty rate of 3% in Customs tariff schedule.
- All imported goods under investment promotion act were exempted from development tax.
- Unexempted capital goods in Customs tariff schedule were granted the same preferential merits mentioned in Customs tariff schedule according to list of demands certified by the ministry of investment.
- Production inputs which do not subject to the rate 3% were granted the same merits mentioned in Customs tariff schedule according to list of demands issued by the ministry of investment such as iron and others.
Application of Customs concession:
For application of Customs concession the following procedures were required:
- The investor introduces an application for the approval of needs list regarding investment project to the ministry of investment, after the approval by the technical parties, the ministry of investment addresses Customs authority to apply concession for the project.
- For obtaining Customs concession, investor shall present the following documents
- Copy of license and project trade name.
- Project location (designated location – hired location by agree of ministry of investment.
- Certificate of importers and exporters.
- List of needs for the project from capital goods and raw materials.
- Copies of invoices and bills of lading of goods.
- Application to Customs director for applying Customs concession.
- After the revision of the documents, afield visit to the project location by Customs authority should be carried out, then concession department in Customs shall open afile for the investor and input his data in the computer.
- Upon the arrival of projects needs (instruments, tools, ram materials … etc) to the Customs station the investor shall introduce the bill of lading, invoices certificate of origin to clearance agent to complete clearance procedures.
Important notice:
- All exports were exempted from Customs duties except raw skin (15%) and scrap iron (25%).
- There were duties other than Customs duties collected by other parties depending on the declared value for the purpose of Customs duties collection these are:
- Sea ports corporation fees.
- Civil Aviation fees.
- Capital equipments, raw materials and production inputs should be imported first, after the running of the project, means of transport concerning the project should be imported according to investment promotion act and its regulation.
- Customs concession shall not granted to project except after finding project location (hire agree, designated location.
- Building materials, tires, spare parts, batteries, ribbed carton and fabrics shall not granted any Customs concession.
