The Nigeria Customs Service has said that two weeks after calling for airlines to register with the service, with a mind to unveiling the number of planes they own, only six companies had responded so far.
The NCS made this known in a statement issued by the National Public Relations Officer, Joseph Attah, on Monday in Abuja, stressing that it will not hesitate to deal with defaulters.
According to Attah, some of the documents sought for the verification include Aircraft Certificate of Registration; NCAA’s Flight Operations Compliance Certificate, NCAA’s Maintenance Compliance Certificate, NCAA’s Permit for non- Commercial Flights and Temporary Import Permit (where applicable).
Part of the statement read, “With two weeks into the 30 days verification period, only six owners of private aircrafts have responded to the invitation, necessitating this update and reminder to those who have not responded, to do so in order to avoid possible detention of their aircrafts.
“The Service believes that owners of private aircrafts are highly placed individuals who would be willing to comply with extant laws of the land governing importation of the aircrafts they own; this includes payments of all appropriate duties and taxes.”
The memo also stated that the ongoing verification is not intended to inconvenience any owner of a private aircraft, as such relevant individual or representative should come with the documents for verification.
“As an agency of government responsible for enforcement of laws governing imports and exports in Nigeria, the NCS will not hesitate to invoke appropriate sanctions on any defaulting private aircraft owner immediately after the expiration of the verification period on Tuesday, July 6, 2021.
“For the avoidance of doubt, private aircraft owners or their representatives are to report to room 305, Tariff & Trade Departments, Nigeria Customs Service, Wuse Zone 3, HQ Abuja from 10am to 5pm. Between Monday, June 7 and Tuesday, July 6, 2021,” it stated.
Attah added that the importance of the exercise is to ensure that all privately-owned aircrafts in the country are properly imported and cleared, with all appropriate taxes paid.
It would be recalled that the service had, on May 31 this year, said it will carry out holistic audit of the importation of private aircrafts operating in the country, starting from June 7 – July 6.
