Issues related to imports through Temu and other e–commerce sites solved, officials

Concerns pertaining to e-commerce platform taxation that affected products that were purchased through websites such as AliExpress, Amazon and Temu have been resolved, according to officials who were present during a meeting of the Committee on Public Finance in Parliament.  

According officials, operations are now flowing smoothly following earlier delays caused by the switch back to HS code-based taxation, the Department of Communication of Parliament said in a statement.

Following a decision by local officials to impose taxes based on HS codes on products purchased through e–commerce sites, several delays occurred during the clearing of such items through Customs.

Furthermore, owing to the increase in costs, it was reported that global websites were hesitant to sell products to local customers.

Considering the development, the Cabinet of Ministers last month granted approval to a proposal to appoint a committee to recommend a temporary monitoring relief for e–commerce translations promptly, with the rapid growth of online transactions in Sri Lanka.

The proposal was presented by the President in his capacity as the Minister of Finance to appoint a committee comprised of officers related to Sri Lanka Customs to provide a temporary monitoring relief for e- commerce activities and to introduce a long term regulatory framework on electronic transactions.

Since the government was expected to facilitate the collection of taxes for e–commerce transactions by creating a regulatory environment, authorities amended certain procedures, after identifying shortcomings in the customs clearance method followed regarding the imports through e–commerce platforms.

However, it disrupted the clearance of goods imported to the country and increased the costs borne by customers.

Small-scale importers and those working closely with e–commerce platforms were severely affected by the changes made to customs clearance procedures.

However, according to officials, the issues have now been resolved and operations have resumed without major delays.