Public Relations Officer of the NCS, Joseph Attah, who
disclosed this at a press conference in Abuja on Tuesday said 29 private
aircrafts were found liable for payment of Customs duty while 62 other private
aircrafts were not verified because their owners made no presentations to
Customs.
Attah said the values of aircrafts liable for payment of
customs duty have been assessed and the appropriate demand notices issued to
their owners for the payment of outstanding duties while owners of the 62
private aircrafts whose status remains uncertain are requested to furnish the
Tariff and Trade department of the Service with the necessary documents for
verification and clearance.
“Within the stipulated period, 86 private jets/aircraft
operators showed up for the exercise and presented the relevant documents for
verification. Of this number, 57 were verified as commercial charter operators,
and were duly cleared for operations.
“29 other private jets/aircrafts were found liable for
payment of Customs duty. Their values were assessed, and the appropriate demand
notices issued to their owners for the payment of outstanding duties.
“However, 62 other private jet/aircrafts whose registration
numbers were duly obtained from the appropriate authority were not verified
because their owners or designated representatives made no presentations to
Customs that could help determine their status.
“To this effect, all 57 commercial charter jet/aircraft
operators who presented their documents for verification are requested to come
forward to the Tariff and Trade department of the Nigeria Customs Service
Headquarters, Abidjan Street, Wuse Zone 3 Abuja-FCT, Room 312 between 10:00am
and 5:00pm to collect their Aircraft Clearance Certificates.
“All 29 Private Jet/Aircraft owners and or their
representatives who have been issued with demand notices have been given (14)
days from the 11th of October 2021 to collect and make payments to the
designated Federal Government accounts after which they will be issued with
Aircraft Clearance Certificates.
“The owners of the 62 private aircrafts for which no
presentations were made for their verification, and whose status remains
uncertain are requested to immediately furnish the Tariff and Trade department
of the Service with the necessary documents for verification and clearance.
“The Nigeria Customs Service implores all concerned to avail
themselves of this opportunity as it will not hesitate to activate enforcement
procedures on identified defaulters,” he said.
Attah said the Federal Aviation Authority of Nigeria has
been put on notice to ensure only privately owned aircrafts duly verified, and
cleared by Customs are authorized to operate within the nation’s airspace.
“Still, other private jet/aircraft owners whose aircrafts’
registration and manufacturers’ serial numbers do not appear on any of the
three lists, will do well to seek further clarification and clearance at
Customs Headquarters to avoid embarrassment.
“The Service therefore looks forward to full compliance by
all Private Jet/Aircraft Owners in the Country,” he said.
In line with its statutory functions as provided for in PART
III Sections27, 35, 37, 45, 46, 47, 52, 56, 63 & 64; Part XI Sections 144,
145, 155, 160, 161&164 and Part XII Sections 167, 168, 169 173&174 of
the Customs and Excise Management Act (CEMA), all owners of Private Aircrafts
in the country were invited to come forward with their relevant importation
clearance documents for verification.
The exercise took place between the 7th of June and August
6th 2021 at the Tariff and Trade Department of the Service. The documents
requested are: Aircraft Certificate of Registration, NCAA’s Flight Operations
Compliance Certificate (FOCC), NCAA’s Maintenance Compliance Certificate (MCC),
NCAA’s Permit for Non-Commercial Flights (PNCF) and Temporary Import Permit
(TIP) (where Applications