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Business Reporter
Zimbabwe has to date cleared more than $5,6 billion import bills out of the $5,8 billion that accrued between 2009 and December 2013 under the absolute amnesty on importers.
The amnesty was effected in September last year after Exchange Control audits conducted had shown that there was a significant amount of import payments not matched with acquitted Bills of Entry (Imports), implying that some importers were making false payments which have no corresponding value of imports coming into the country.
Authorities were worried that this demonstrated possible cases of illegal externalisation of foreign currency by some importers and the general lack of discipline in the economy.
Thus, the amnesty was a measure to curb externalisation and ensure that the country received true and fair value from its import payments.
The 90-day conditional amnesty allowed importers to acquit their Bills of Entry with authorised dealers for advance payments for all imported goods.
However, the amnesty expired on December 31 but industrialists felt the time frame was not sufficient and approached RBZ seeking an extension and were granted absolute amnesty.
Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe governor Dr John Mangudya, in his Monetary Policy Statement, said the policy was meant to allow importers to start on a clean slate by acquitting Bills of Entry with a value close to $5,8 billion.
“The policy achieved its intended objective since banks were granted the authority to acquit all outstanding advance payments covering the period 2009 to end of December 2013. To date, $5,6 billion has been cleared under the amnesty,” he said.
The central bank boss, who had also extended the amnesty on non-recoverable export receipts to March 31 this year with a view to allowing exporters to start on a clean slate, said the exercise was successful.
He said a total of $104 million worth of CD1 export forms were acquitted from a total of $108 million that was declared non-recoverable under absolute amnesty on overdue export receipts.
CD1s are declaration forms that show the quantity and value that a particular company would have exported over a given period.
CD1 forms are used in international trade and companies in Zimbabwe submit the CD1 form returns to the central bank for export proceeds reconciliation purposes.
Online Reporter