Freight Forwarders Clamour for 2-years Customs License Renewal

By DAPO OLAWUNI

Freight forwarders under the Save Nigeria Importers Exporters and Freight Forwarders Coalition have called on the Nigeria Customs Service to extend the life span of their practicing licenses to 2-years before renewal.

Cordinator of the group, Chief Osita Patrick Chukwu in a chat with DAILY TREND NEWS on Wednesday condemned the rigorous process of renewing clearing licenses with the customs on yearly basis.

According to him, the process is stressful as, freight forwarders would have to travel to Abuja with documents yearly, adding that the license also take months before it is eventually issued.

“The one year given by the Nigeria Customs Service on our clearing licenses is too small, they should increase it to three years, just like we have the international passports and drivers licenses”

“As it is currently, if your license is having an issue of renewal, you would not be able to operate”

“Again, going to the customs every year with documents to renew license is not good, we don’t need all these rigorous activities again, they should allow us to pay our renewal fees yearly while the license span two years”

“If this is done, it would reduce our stress of jostling Abuja every year with the attendant stress and capital expenditures in renewal of license, this is what we are advocating for he said

Chief Osita said that presently, N250,000 is spent to renew the licence yearly and this is only receipted.

Speaking on, he said “The customs can make it N250,000 per year, but the span of the license should be for two years.
Every year, it would just be payments only.

“Customs can still carry out the yearly inspection of our offices, the fact that the license is two years now does not make customs to renege in doing their legitimate duties, nobody disturbs them from doing their job, all we are saying is that the rigorous way we use in renewing should stop

“It takes months for the license to come out, by the time you start doing the linking, it takes another month.

“The customs usually adjust its tariffs, this does not make the old one obsolete, amendments can be carried out as many times as possible.

“If you put in for renewal in November, the license would not be ready until next year, and throughout this period, you would not be able to operate or clear any cargo, meanwhile the months that is being wasted has already been paid for

“There are cases you would have with the customs that it could take you three months to solve it, for these period, the license is on hold, you are crippled everywhere, you cannot work with it, you cannot pay your staff

“The Federal Government should think twice because the private sector is helping them a lot, if not for the private sector, a lot of things would have gone wrong in this country

“Because of the huge responsibilities the private sector are unable to carry due to government policies, there is lots of unemployment out there” he said