From May 2015 until today, prime contractor for the construction of highway, Chinese CBRC company, has been exempted from paying €24 million for customs and excise.
Government’s Department managed by Mr Vladan Joković has recently delivered to Dan data about customs duties and excise for 2018 and part of 2019.
Total amount that CBRC failed to pay for the customs duties amounts €20,4 million, whereas another €3,6 million refers to excise. Representatives of Customs Administration explained that the Law on Bar-Boljare Highway stipulated exemption from paying customs duties on the import of construction material intended for the highway construction, equipment for the installation of structures and for the construction of facilities intended for the installation in the highway structures.
“Contractor claims right to be exempt from paying customs duties on the import of construction material, equipment and facilities. Only these three groups of products will be exempt. In case of other types of products customs duties will be charged at the rate prescribed for the specific product. VAT on all products imported by the contractor is charged at a rate of 0%, provided that the contractor submits control mark issued by Tax Administration”.
Works on the construction of highway started on 15 May, 2015. The deadline for its completion was set to be 11 May of this year. The date however has been changed and the new one has been agreed – 30 September, 2020 due to some additional works that the Government forgot to put in the contract.
Data of the Customs Administration shows that this year, starting from the 1st of May, CBRC has been exempted from paying €20,9 thousand of customs duties. In 2018, exemption amounted €476,6 thousand, €10,3 million in 2017, €1,03 million a year earlier and €8,6 million in 2015.
According to the data delivered at the end of the year by the Minister of Finance, Mr Darko Radunović, from December last year, CBRC and domestic producers were exempted from paying €112 million of customs duties, excise and VAT.
