The government has decided to declare a grace period for the motor vehicles imported during the period of January 2015 to November 2017 and pending the Customs clearance at the Hambantota Port, says the Ministry of Finance.

Motor vehicles that fulfil the following criteria will accordingly be eligible for the said grace period:

Said motor vehicles imported by an importer/individual based on the Letter(s) of Credit established on his/her name for personal usage or

Said motor vehicles imported by any authorized agent/motor vehicles importer on the request of the identified customer(s), who have paid required money to the said authorized agent/importer through any official channel for the importation of such vehicle for personal usage.

Further information in this regard can be obtained from the Gazette Notifications No. 2117/48 dated April 04, 2019 and last amended by Gazette No. 2135/55 dated August 08, 2019 under the Excise (Special Provisions) of Act. No. 13 of 1989, the media release issued by the Finance Ministry said.

Under this scheme, eligible individuals are informed to apply for the relief to the Director General, Department of Fiscal Policy, General Treasury, along with the requested proof documents on or before October 31, 2019.

The Finance Ministry further stated, under this scheme, it is mandatory to register the vehicles under the name of the relevant individual importers’ names within 30 days of the clearance of the vehicle from the wharf.