Govt moves to tighten export, import controls
Malawi Government has moved to strengthen enforcement of import and export regulations as part of a wider effort to promote accountability in the collection of taxes and boost revenue collection.
Minister of Finance and Economic Affairs Sosten Gwengwe said yesterday at a press briefing held at Capital Hill in Lilongwe that government and its law enforcement agencies introduced the measure to prevent unprincipled traders from evading tax authorities and smuggling agricultural products and precious metals into and outside the country.
He said: “Some individuals are exporting products without repatriating back to Malawi the earned export proceeds. These malpractices do not only deprive the country of its precious foreign exchange but also negatively affect the country’s growth and development prospects.”
To put it into context, in 2022, the government only collected $712 million in exports proceeds against $1.4 billion which exporters declared to local authorities, representing about 50 percent, according to figures from the Reserve Bank of Malawi (RBM).
The measures include the introduction of customs-controlled export warehouses, the introduction of advance income tax collection on exports, strict enforcement of in-transit bonds and the re-introduction of the CD1 form requirement for exports above $2 000 (about K2.1 million), among others.
On his part, Secretary to the Treasury McDonald Mafuta-Mwale said enforcing the use of the In Transit bonds will help the government enforce compliance on the imports coming into the country.
He said: “We have had situations where trucks declare they are in transit to a neighbouring country only to end up selling goods in local markets. The in-transit form will ensure a truck registered as in transit proceeds to its stated destination. This will help reduce smuggling.”
The measures were introduced in the 2023-24 fiscal year.
