THE CLOSING of one of the doors currently ajar in Customs/banks procedures should do much to help clamp down on fraudulent declarations of values of imported goods.
Part of the plan proposed by the SA Revenue Services (SARS) - into which Customs now falls - is to build in a cross-check on Customs value declarations pre-clearance, and the foreign exchange applied for to pay for the consignments.
The current swindle is to under-declare the goods' value - as little as 10% of real cost is frequent; have one invoice when presenting the bill of entry; then take a totally different (and true) invoiceto the bank when applying for the foreign moolah.
In the new legislation, banks will be required to forward the original copy of the invoice to Customs - who would subsequently attach it to the corresponding bill of entry, passed when the goods entered the country.
Any discrepancy would be noted, said SARS chief, Piet Liebenberg - in ominous tones, FTW was told.
