JC&A undertook a Regulatory Impact Assessment (RIA) of the proposed amendments to the 2007 Customs Act and related legislation required for Nepal joining the international Revised Kyoto Convention (RKC) on Custom procedures facilitation.
Based on intense consultation with key stakeholders the RIA reviewed a series of documented the cost and benefits of implementing six key facilitation schemes:
- Establishment of a single guarantee mechanism for many customs ports
- Possibility to lodge custom documents by electronic means
- Special clearance for pre-authorized importers/exporters with good compliance rates
- Time limit for owners of the goods to be compensated after an auction
- Permission for the pre-release of goods under certain circumstances
- Coordination mechanism for simultaneous inspection by different agencies
Based on cost-effectiveness analysis the Customs Act and related was reformed.
The RIA was a requirement for triggering a new set of grants to Nepal from the South Asia Sub-regional Economic Cooperation (SASEC) Trade Facilitation Programme of ADB’s South Asia Regional Cooperation Strategy, 2011–2015.
Nepal, ADB, 2014.
