Duty Payment Saga: Customs Get Knocks Over Court Judgement

Peter Olaniyi

The Nigeria Customs Service, (NCS) has come under fire from maritime stakeholders over the recent court judgment on the non-payment of duty on personal effect that is brought into the country.

Maritime industry stakeholders also knocked the service over the decision to appeal the ruling describing the decision to be an overzealous act that could bring embarrassment to the country and citizenry.

Recall that the NCS was slammed a fine of N5 million naira by a Federal High Court in Abuja for imposing an import duty of One Hundred and Fifty-Six Thousand, Nine Hundred and Fifty-Five Naira, Twenty Kobo only (N156, 955.20k) on a personal Louis Vuitton Laptop Bag.

The customs officials had on the 24th of June 2019 imposed the duty payment on an imported Laptop Bag found in the luggage owned by one Kehinde Ogunwumiju, SAN, despite his protest that the bag was for personal use.

The court had ruled that for duties collected on items to be considered legal, the officers of the NSC must have established that the items are meant for sale, barter, or exchange and are not for personal or household use.

The ruling which NCS has vowed to appeal at the appellate court, however, the move by the service to appeal the judgment has however generated backlash from maritime industry stakeholders who believes the service are just been overzealous.

Reacting to the judgment the founder of the National Council of Managing Directors of Licensed Customs Agents (NCMDLA) Mr. Lucky Amiwero stated that it is wrong for the NCS to demand duty on personal effect stating that a person is entitled to personal and household effect having spent up to nine month in a particular country, stating that there is no clause as to what the cost of the personal effect maybe.

“It is wrong you don’t pay duty on personal effect but you pay duty on some of the items that are not personal effect, once you have spent up to nine month in any country, you are entitled to your personal effect you are entitled to your household and personal effect but if the items are not personal effect then those items are dutiable, and there is nothing like the price is above normal price once it is personal effect the items should be free of duty”.

Also speaking a former National President of the National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF), Dr. Eugene Nweke also commend the ruling of the court, stating that there have been unnecessary abuses on the issue of personnel effect, he said the judgment is a good way of ending the nuisance by way of practice.

Nweke added that there is need for maritime industry stakeholders to look at the application of the ruling as it affects personal effects that comes through the seaport.

He urges freight forwarders and maritime industry stakeholders to go the way of the court rather than absorbing every decision of the NCS adding that the ruling is an eye-opener to the fact that some issues should be decided in court.

“We also need to look at the application of personal goods from the seaport, we need to know to what extent the judgment also applies to the seaport? are there goods that fall under the personal effect from the seaport that customs have been collecting duty on, if there is why should they be collecting duty on it?

“How come nobody has sued customs from the seaport in the same way? So for me, I believe for every freight forwarder the judgment is a good judgment because there have been unnecessary abuses on the issue of personnel effect, so the judgment is a good way of ending the nuisance by way of practice.

“But we need to know what is the extent of application of the judgment that should be the next step now, and in fact with this, it is an eye-opener that some of these issues should be decided in court,” he said.

Also speaking the National Secretary of the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) Babatunde Mukaila, also knocked the NCS for always the judge and the jury over the time, he commended the ruling stating that ANLCA is interested in the case and will pursue the case to the end.

“The customs have always been the judge and the jury over the time as much as customs have stepped out to challenge this ruling we are going to see how is going to end and ANLCA is an interested party we would like to follow the proceeding to the end so that we can be properly guided,” he said.

Also speaking from the angle of the law, a maritime lawyer and the president of Women in Maritime Africa (WIMAFRICA) Jean Chiazor Anishere also condemned the rationale of the NCS to impose duty on personal effect, stating that the provisions of section 8 of the Customs Excise Tariff and the 2nd schedule to it are quite clear and unambiguous.

She urged the service to ensure that their actions be in full compliance of the law, otherwise, she said their actions will not only be ludicrous, but extremely embarrassing to the Country and its citizenry

“I don’t understand the NCS rationale of imposing a duty on a personal belonging that is obviously not meant or proven to be for commercial purpose?

“The provisions of section 8 of the Customs Excise Tariff and the 2nd schedule to it are quite clear and unambiguous. Honestly, whilst I appreciate the immense efforts of our NCS in revenue collection for our Country, surely, their actions must always be in full compliance with the Law. Otherwise, their actions will not only be ludicrous, but extremely embarrassing to our Country and its citizenry.

“I applaud the decision of the Court and I do hope that the exemplary damages awarded, which I consider to be punitive, will serve as deterrence for future illegal and rather overzealous acts” she concluded.