LAHORE: Chief Collector Customs (Exports) Mohsin Rafiq has said that Customs authorities are committed to providing maximum facilitation to exporters and positive changes are being considered to improve the Export Facilitation Scheme (EFS).
He said practical measures would be taken to ensure expeditious clearance of export consignments, timely payment of duty drawback claims, and removal of all irritants and bottlenecks in the EFS to provide greater ease to the export sector.
Speaking at a meeting at the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), he said a committee has been constituted to review the EFS and prepare its future roadmap. The committee will formulate recommendations after consultation with all stakeholders.
LCCI President Faheem Ur Rehman Saigol appreciated the government’s decision to extend the utilization period for imported raw materials under EFS from nine months to eighteen months, but said the business community is still facing several issues.
He pointed out that in the textile sector, varying interpretations and appraisements of identical products under different HS codes at different ports are causing unnecessary difficulties, delays and demurrage costs for industrialists. He stressed the need to ensure uniform interpretation and appraisement of HS codes for specific sectors.
The LCCI President further said that approval of Letters of Credit and processing by IOCO takes up to two months. He observed that the procedures for determining production capacity and adding new HS codes are complicated and unclear. He proposed that the entire system should be based on a single-window operation so that industrialists do not have to deal with multiple departments and approval processes.
Faheem said that the large number of documents required under the EFS creates difficulties, particularly for the SME sector. He proposed integrating the scheme with SMEDA’s SME-RP portal so that small and medium enterprises can complete all procedures through a single platform.
The chief collector assured the participants that the proposals and suggestions of the business community would be given serious consideration and that, through consultation with stakeholders, recommendations would be formulated that would not only make the EFS more effective but would also contribute to increasing Pakistan’s exports and promoting industrial growth.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2026
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