Customs apprehends P5-M worth of luxury vehicles declared as truck parts

The Customs Bureau on Wednesday said it apprehended P5-million worth of misdeclared shipments from South Korea after reporting luxury vehicles as "truck parts."

The shipment apprehended at the Port of Subic contained three second land luxury vehicles: one BMW 735 IL, one Chrysler, and one Audi — with an estimated total value of P5,00,430.

Photo courtesy of the Bureau of Customs

"This is a case of misdeclaration, a violation on the Tariff and Customs Code of the Philippines (TCCP), and we are bound by Customs laws to apprehend imports or exports which are shipped in violation of the TCCP," Enforcement Deputy Commissioner Ariel F. Nepomuceno said in a statement.

"This shipment may also be in violation of EO (Executive Order) 156," he added. According to Nepomuceno, car importers usually resort to misdeclaration of cargoes to avoid the ban on importation of used cars as mandated by EO 156.

Misdeclared shipment (Photos courtesy of the Bureau of Customs)

Also on Wednesday, the BOC said it recently issued a memorandum mandating all concerned offices of the bureau to oversee correct and proper valuation of all harmonized system codes of all motor vehicles.

It stressed that no such commodities in Completely Built Unit (CBU) condition and form — already fully assembled before being delivered to another destination — shall be processed or released without securing necessary clearances from the Office of the Commissioner. — Jon Viktor Cabuenas/VVP, GMA News