Time Release Study of Banglabandha Land Border Crossing Station, Bangladesh

Trade and Transport Facilitation Monitoring Mechanism in Bangladesh:

Baseline study series #4

Time Release Study of

Banglabandha Land Border

Crossing Station, Bangladesh

The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) is the regional development arm of the United Nations and serves as the main economic and social development centre for the United Nations in Asia and the Pacific. Its mandate is to foster cooperation between its 53 members and 9 associate members. ESCAP provides the strategic link between global and country-level programmes and issues. It supports Governments of countries in the region in consolidating regional positions and advocates regional approaches to meeting the region’s unique socioeconomic challenges in a globalizing world. The ESCAP secretariat is in Bangkok. Please visit the ESCAP website at for further information.

The darker areas of the map are ESCAP members and associate members.

Time Release Study of Banglabandha Land Border Crossing Station, Bangladesh

The 4th report of a series of 5 studies on Trade and Transport Facilitation Monitoring Mechanism (TTFMM) in Bangladesh

June 2017, Bangkok, Thailand

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Contents

Tables ______iii

Preface ______iv

Acknowledgements ______v Executive summary ______vi

Chapter 1. Introduction ______1

Chapter 2. Methodology and Data Collection ______3 2.1 Overview of Time Release Study (TRS) ______3 2.2 Data collection ______3

Chapter 3. Review of Import and Export Process in Banglabandha ______6 3.1 Overview of the Banglabandha Land Customs Station ______6 3.2 Customs Procedures at the Banglabandha Customs Station ______6

Chapter 4. Analysis and Findings ______8 4.1 Import and Export Cargo Processing Time ______8 4.2 Key recommendations ______9

Appendix 1. List of participants of workshops for the TTFMM baseline study in Bangladesh _ 11

Appendix 2. Questionnaire for TRS data collection in Banglabandha ______19

Appendix 3. Photos of Banglabandha Land Port ______31

Appendix 4. Banglabandha Land Port: at a glance ______32

Appendix 5. Import Process ______33

Appendix 6. Export Process ______39

Appendix 7. Time required for the import steps ______43

Appendix 8. Time required for the export steps ______46

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Tables

Table 2. 1 Time frame for implementing TTFMM baseline study ...... 3 Table 4. 1. Average Time for Cargo Processing from Arrival to Release ...... 8 Table 4. 2. Average Time for Import Cargo Processing ...... 8 Table 4. 3. Average Time for Export Cargo Processing ...... 8

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Preface

In the process of undertaking the baseline study of Trade and Transport Facilitation Monitoring Mechanism (TTFMM) in Bangladesh, five studies are carried out to provide multiple facets of trade and transport facilitation covering export and import of specific products, corridors and border crossings. A synthesis report is also produced based on five study reports.

The current report is focused on the Time Release Study (TRS) at Banglabandha Land Border Crossing Station, Bangladesh. It is a stand-alone document itself and in the meantime the 4th report of a series of 5 studies and feeds the synthesis report. As such, it needs to be read along with other reports to fully understand the background, key findings and conclusions of the TTFMM baseline study.

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Acknowledgements

In preparing this report, great support was received from the host country which was essential for completion of the study. Contribution from Md Nojibur Rahman, Firoz Shah Alam Abdul Hakim and Hasan Mohammad Tarek Rikabder is gratefully acknowledged.

The baseline study and the underlying project were managed by Tengfei Wang from ESCAP and Aileen Pangilinan from ADB under the guidance of Yann Duval and Ronald Antonio Q. Butiong. Tanya E. Marin, Linel Ann Reyes-Tayag, and Alona Mae Agustin from ADB provided support for the logistical arrangement of the workshops.

The report was prepared by Mohammad Farhad and Tengfei Wang. Data collection was carried out by Mohammad Farhad. Study design and supervision were provided by Tengfei Wang. Participants of the various workshops under the project, as detailed in Appendix 1, substantially contributed their expertise to enhance the quality of the project. Mashuk Al Hossain and Muhammad Minhaz Uddin Pahloan played a crucial role for organizing the TTFMM national validation workshop on 31 July-1 August 2016 in Dhaka, Bangladesh1. Critical review is provided by Vyonna Bondi.

Shigeaki Katsu from Customs Training Institute, Japan was nominated by the World Customs Organization to deliver training on Time Release Study at the national workshop on TTFMM held in Dhaka on 28-29 April 2014. His guidance on application of TRS is gratefully acknowledged.

The TTFMM baseline study is funded under both ADB’s Technical Assistance Special Fund and the Japan Fund for Poverty Reduction.

1 http://sasec.asia/index.php?page=event&eid=213&url=bgd-ttfmm-validation

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Executive summary

The Report is focused on the Time Release Study (TRS) at Banglabandha Land Border Crossing Station, Bangladesh. Following the Guide to Measure the Time Required for the Release of Goods prepared by the World Customs Organization2, the study reviews border crossing procedures in detail and examines the border crossing time.

Data was conducted from 10 March to 25 May 2016. Sample includes 51 export assignments and 32 import assignment. Results show that average time taken for release of all types of exports cargoes amounts to approximately 1 hour 45 minutes, which includes, among others, 1 hour 23 minutes for customs procedures and 12 minutes for port authority clearance procedures. The average time taken for release of all types of import cargoes amounts to approximately 6 hours 34 minutes, which includes, among others, 4 hours 23 minutes for completing the procedures at port authority area-weighing and unloading, 2 hours 45 minutes for completing customs procedures, 14 minutes for completing banking procedures and 18 minutes for completing port authority clearance procedures.

This report finds high efficiency in import and export process but cautions that such high efficiency may be explained by very low traffic volume during the study period. It observes several areas for improvement. For example, there is a lack of coordination between Customs and other border agencies in conducting inspections of import consignments, which sometimes lengthen the release procedures.

Recommendations to further enhance border crossing efficiency are made according to the bottlenecks identified in the study. For example, it is proposed that ASYCUDA World should be installed and fully operationalized at this LCS and an authorized economic operator (AEO) scheme as outlined in the Revised Kyoto Convention and WTO TFA should be implemented.

2 More detailed information about the Guide is available at < http://www.wcoomd.org/en/topics/facilitation/instrument-and-tools/tools/pf_tools_time_release.aspx>.

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Chapter 1. Introduction

The TTFMM baseline study in Bangladesh was conducted as a part of a broad initiative to establish sustainable trade and transport facilitation monitoring mechanisms (TTFMM) in the country in the long term. The TTFMM project covers not only Bangladesh but also Bhutan and Nepal under the South Asia Subregional Economic Cooperation (SASEC) Program. In particular, the TTFMM baseline study aims to:

1) Explain the rationale for establishing TTFMM and key methodology for data collection and analysis. 2) Provide a set of indicators and underlying data on trade and transport facilitation performance in Bangladesh. Such baseline data will ensure that the progress or setback in trade facilitation performance in the country can be benchmarked. 3) Diagnose key bottlenecks and recommendations for removing bottlenecks and simplifying trade procedures. In this respect, the study provides policy recommendations to policy makers and stakeholders. 4) Propose a way forward to maintain the sustainability of TTFMM. Sustainability is at the core of the design of TTFMM.

The scope of the baseline studies of TTFMM was decided through a series of regional and national training workshops held in Bangkok, Thailand in November 2013, in Dhaka, Bangladesh in April, 2014, Wuhan, China in October 2015 and in Bangkok, Thailand in January 2016. A wide range of stakeholders were consulted in this process, as shown in the lists of participants of different meetings in Appendix 1. After extensive exercise and discussion with the relevant stakeholders, it was agreed that the TTFMM baseline study in Bangladesh would cover the following processes, products and trade routes and corridors:

(i) Export of plastic kitchenware and tableware from Bangladesh to Bhutan through Dhaka- Rangpur- Burimari- Changrabandha- Jaigaon- Phuentsholing- Thimphu; and (ii) Import of lentil from Nepal to Bangladesh through Kathmandu-Kakarvitta-Fulbari-Banglabandha-Dhaka.

More specifically, it was decided that the Business Process analysis (BPA) would cover all the above-mentioned products and corridors, Time Release Study (TRS) would cover border crossings at Burimari and Banglabandha land customs stations (LCS) and Time-Cost-Distance (TCD) /Corridor Performance Measurement and Monitoring (CPMM) would cover the corridors from Dhaka to Burimari and from Banglabandha to Dhaka.

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The report is focused on Time Release Study (TRS) at Banglabandha Land Border Crossing Station, Bangladesh. It is a stand-alone document itself and in the meantime the 4th report of a series of 5 studies and feeds the synthesis report. As such, it needs to be read along with other reports to fully understand the background, key findings and conclusions of the TTFMM baseline study.

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Chapter 2. Methodology and Data Collection

2.1 Overview of Time Release Study (TRS)

Developed and promoted by the World Customs Organization (WCO), Time Release Study (or TRS) is used to measure the average time taken between the arrival of the goods and their release. The outcome of TRS enables Customs to identify both the problem areas and potential corrective actions to increase their efficiency.

Importance of measuring border crossing time using TRS has been widely recognized. The WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) article 6.1 states that “Members are encouraged to measure and publish their average release time of goods periodically and in a consistent manner, using tools such as, inter alia, the WCO Time Release Study.” According to WCO, TRS has been conducted in 33 countries in the world including 19 countries in Asia and the Pacific, 9 countries in Africa and 5 countries from other region by 20153. In Bangladesh, TRS was conducted at Chittagong and Benapole border crossing in 2014.4

2.2 Data collection

The timeframe for implementing TTFMM baseline study in Bangladesh was approximately 14 months and is shown in Table 2.1. The key activities are highlighted below.

Table 2. 1 Time frame for implementing TTFMM baseline study 2015 2016 10 11 12 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Sub-regional meeting to plan the baseline study in Wuhan, China Workshop to finalize the plan of the baseline study in Bangkok, Thailand Data collection on BPA Data collection on TRS Data collection on TCD/CPMM TTFMM database, analysis and draft report National results validation meeting Refine TTFMM data and analysis, and finalize study report Source: prepared by the study team

3 Source: http://www.unescap.org/sites/default/files/01-WCO%20Time%20release%20study-Toshihiko%20Osawa.pdf 4 See http://www.nbr.gov.bd/contents/publication/48.pdf and http://www.nbr.gov.bd/contents/publication/49.pdf for details of the studies

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The methodology outlined in the WCO’s Guide titled “The Time Required for the Release of Goods Version 2” and the methodology used by the WCO and the International Finance Corporation in conducting TRS at Chittagong and Benapole were adopted in this study.

Phase 1- Preparation of the Study This phase included appointment of a Consultant by ADB; design of the study (methodology, sampling etc.) with the guidance and technical assistance from UNESCAP; identifying and establishing contacts with stakeholders including the Bangladesh National Board of Revenue (NBR), Customs officials from Rangpur Customs Excise & Vat commissionerate and Banglabandha LCS; mapping of various steps in Import and Export processes; and development of study tools.

Phase 2- Preparing the TRS questionnaires in consultation with stakeholders This phase was implemented in various stages. Firstly, ADB and UNESCAP, in collaboration with the WCO, organized a series of national workshops in Phuentsholing, Bhutan, Dhulikhel, Nepal, and Dhaka, Bangladesh during 2014 to enhance the capacity of policy makers and relevant stakeholders in implementing TTFMM and prepare for the TTFMM baseline studies. Concrete outcomes of these meetings include, among others, was the identification of products and corridors for the TTFMM baseline studies. Secondly, a sub-regional meeting was organized in October 2015 in Wuhan, China to take stock of progress made and discuss further steps. Subsequently, the ADB national consultant visited Rangpur and Customs Excise & Vat commissionerate, Banglabandha LCS and Burimari LCS during 23-27 December 2015 to establish contact with the key officials from Customs, Clearing and Forwarding Agents, Land Port Authority with support from the National Board of Revenue, brief and sensitize the scope and process of implementation of the TRS at the Banglabandha LCS and Burimari LCS and identify various steps of import and export procedures.

Another workshop for the implementation of TTFMM was organized in Bangkok, Thailand on 13– 15 January 2016. Experts from ADB and UNESCAP, international consultants, all national consultants, customs officials, and freight forwarders attended the workshop. Key officials from NBR, Rangpur Customs Excise & Vat commissionerate, Burimari LCS and Banglabandha LCS, clearing and forwarding agents from both the land ports attended the workshop. The TRS questionnaires were drafted during the workshop.

Phase 3- Translating TRS questionnaires in local language To facilitate data collection, the TRS questionnaires were translated into Bangla in consultation with the key customs officials and clearing and forwarding agents.

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Phase 4- Pilot testing and finalisation of the TRS questionnaires From 9 to 11 February 2016, key customs officials, clearing and forwarding agents and land port officials implemented pilot testing of the TRS questionnaires. The feedback from pilot testing was considered for finalisation of TRS questionnaires. Final questionnaires used in this TRS are attached as Appendix 2.

Phase 5- Data Collection Initially it was decided that the Banglabandha TRS data collection would be conducted for a period of 6 regular working days commencing on the 10 March to 15 March 2016 and collect at least 50 export and 50 import data. However, due to the low traffic, period for data collection was extended to 10 March to 29 March 2016. In total, data on 51 export assignment and 32 import assignments were collected. Data were mainly collected by the C&F Agents with support of Customs and Land Port Authority.

Phase 6- Data Analysis Data were recorded and analyzed using a simple Microsoft Excel file.

Phase 7- National results validation meeting and follow-up activities A national validation workshop was organized by the Bangladesh National Board of Revenue (NBR), in collaboration with ADB and ESCAP from 31 July-1 August, 2016 in Dhaka, Bangladesh and attended by representatives from relevant Government departments and private sector agencies. The project study team presented preliminary study findings and results to stakeholders including import and export process mapping, details of data collection and results from Time Release studies (TRS) carried out at Burimari and Banglabandha LCS. Comments from the workshop were taken into consideration by the project team to revise the report. Approximately one month after the meeting, the study team shared the revised reports with the NBR and meeting participants and incorporated further feedback for revision.

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Chapter 3. Review of Import and Export Process in Banglabandha LCS

A prerequisite for conducting TRS is to fully understand the import and export procedures because the TRS questionnaire needs to be designed to accurately reflect the trade process and procedures. This chapter reviews the import and export process in Banglabandha LCS.

3.1 Overview of the Banglabandha Land Customs Station

The Banglabandha land port serves as a gateway to the northern region of Bangladesh. Its function is to facilitate trade and tourism between Bangladesh and its three neighboring countries: Bhutan, India and Nepal. Currently, this port is mainly used for trade with Nepal and India. Major import items through this port are stone boulders, rice, wheat, maize, apple, grapes and ginger from India; and lentils, wheat bran, chirata, hajmola tablet and ritha from Nepal. Bangladeshi products are exported to Nepal mainly through this port. Major export items are fresh potato, battery, cotton knitted fabrics, jhoot waste cotton, food products, plastic and melamine goods, medicine, soft drinks, tissue paper, fabrics, raw jute. Further information on this land port is available in Appendix 3 and Appendix 4.

3.2 Customs Procedures at the Banglabandha Customs Station

All Customs processes at Banglabandha Custom House are carried out manually since this custom house has not yet been connected to the ASYCUDA World. Clearing and Forwarding Agents (C&F Agents) play a major role in clearing import and export consignments. The customs release and clearance processes rely on reviews of hard copies of documentation by Customs. Almost in every step of the customs clearance process, the hard copies of the import/export documents are returned by Customs to the C&F Agent for physical transferring of the documents to the next step of the process.

3.2.1 Import Cargo processing

An Indian or Nepalese truck carrying import goods has to undergo several procedures administered by various border agencies to enter Bangladesh through Banglabandha Land Port. The major steps involved in these procedures are detailed below: . On arrival of import cargo at Zero Point of the border area, the Borderman of C&F Agencies collects Car Pass from the carrier; . Entry of Car Pass and information about truck and driver in the ledger at Tong House at the Zero Point;

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. Entry of import cargo at the gate of BLPA and weighing of loaded truck at the Weigh Bridge; . Submission of Car Pass by the C&F Agent to the Customs and subsequent processing by Customs; . Submission of Bill of Entry to Customs Clerk and entry in the Customs Ledger; and assigning Bill of Entry (‘C’) number to the Entry; . Examination of Import goods as per declaration by Customs officials (examination by Customs Intelligence where necessary); . Assessment of duties and taxes by Customs officials, . Payment of duty and taxes; . Unloading of import goods and loading to Bangladeshi trucks; . Providing Customs release order; . Completion of BLPA release procedures including payment of port charges; and . Final exit of import goods from Land Port.

There are 26 distinct steps involved in the import process from arrival of import cargo at the border to its final release and exit from the Banglabandha Land Port, as shown in Appendix 5.

3.2.2 Export Cargo processing

Export consignment processing at the Banglabandha Land Port is less complicated than the import processes. It comprises primarily submission of Bill of Export, entry in ledger and processing, Customs examination and assessment; payment of any duties and taxes; Customs and BLPA release and export. The main steps involved are: . Arrival of Export consignment at the Land Port and entry at the gate. . Submission of Bill of export and export documentation by the C&F Agent to Customs Clerk and entry in the Customs ledger; . Customs examination and assessment; . Payment of applicable fees, duties and taxes (if any); . Customs and BLPA release and subsequent export.

Export processing involves 21 distinct steps involved from arrival of import cargo at Land Port to its final release and subsequent export and border crossing, as shown in Appendix 6.

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Chapter 4. Analysis and Findings

4.1 Import and Export Processing Time

Key results on the interval from arrival of cargo to release at Banglabandha are shown in Tables 4.1 through 4.3. Detailed breakdowns of the intervals at various steps of import and export procedures are presented in Appendix 7 and Appendix 8.

Table 4. 1 Average Time for Cargo Processing from Arrival to Release Intervals Type of Cargo Average Time Average time taken in Banglabandha for release Import 6 hours 34 minutes of all types of Import cargoes Average time taken in Banglabandha for release Export 1 hours 45 minutes of all types of Export cargoes Source: prepared by the study team

Table 4. 2 Average Time for Import Cargo Processing

Import Procedures Average Time Port Authority Area-Weighing and Unloading (Some activities are done 4 hours 23 minutes parallel to the Customs Procedures) Customs Procedures 2 hours 45 minutes Banking Procedures 0 hours 14 minutes Port Authority Clearance Procedures (post Customs) 0 hours 19 minutes Source: prepared by the study team

Table 4. 3 Average Time for Export Cargo Processing

Export Procedures Average Time Customs Procedures 1 hours 23 minutes Port Authority Clearance Procedures (post Customs) 0 hours 13 minutes Source: prepared by the study team

Findings from the TRS study at the Banglabandha Land Port are stated below:  Both the Import and Export cargo processing time is short. Customs release procedures and the Bangladesh Land Port Authority release procedures are efficient. However, such high efficiency

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may be explained by the very low volumes of export and import during the study period. The cargo processing time might be considerably higher if trade through this land port increases significantly.  Banglabandha LCS is not yet connected to the ASYCUDA World and all the customs clearance procedures are managed here manually.  Analysis of the process mapping reveals that Assistant Revenue Officer’s decisions are always referred to the Revenue Officer and the Revenue Officer’s decisions are often referred to the Assistant Commissioner. Assistant Commissioner’s decisions can also be referred to higher levels of management. While this may aim to ensure accountability, it nevertheless reflects duplication of work in the Customs procedures.  There is no robust risk management system and no formal post clearance audit system. All Bills of Entry and Bills of Export are subject to full documentary checks and full examination by Customs and other border agencies. This lack of a risk based approach to clearance by all border agencies is hampering trade facilitation and causing some delays in the time taken to release goods.  No border agency official (except BGB and Police) wears a uniform which makes it challenging to identify who are border management personnel and who are members of the general public, C&F agents or traders.  Lack of coordination between Customs and other border agencies in conduct inspections of import consignments sometimes lengthen the release procedures.

4.2 Key recommendations

Against the key bottlenecks identified, the following recommendations are proposed in this report:

 Install ASYCUDA World at Banglabandha LCS, which will reduce unnecessary physical movement of documents.  Review the internal workflows to further simplify the customs clearance processes and reduce duplication of work. This can be achieved by reassessing delegations of responsibility and repetitive procedures such as the referral of Bills of Entry and Export from the Assistant Revenue Officer to the Revenue Officer at each step of the current release and clearance process. Revenue Officers and Assistant Commissioners should perform periodic monitoring by checking a sample of the work for accountability and quality control purposes and focus on the higher end of the risk continuum.  Implement a trusted trader program as outlined in the Revised Kyoto Convention and WTO’s TFA. This would allow traders who meet certain criteria to benefit from simplified procedures such as direct release, prior release, and simplified declaration. It would allow securing full benefits from the Authorized Economic Operator program, which NBR is developing currently.

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 Building the capacity of the front line officials to better manage the paperless system/single window and overall risk management system.  Strengthen the professional relationship with other actors involved in the customs clearing procedures.  The land port authority Banglabandha and Customs may share data electronically to further simplify trade procedures.

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Appendix 1. List of participants of workshops for the TTFMM baseline study in Bangladesh

A1. Inception Workshop on Trade and Transport Facilitation Performance Monitoring 26-27 November 2013 Bangkok, Thailand

GOVERNMENT OF BANGLADESH Mr. Karma Dorji Executive Director, Bhutan Agriculture and Food Mr. Sultan MD Iqbal Regulatory Authority (BAFRA) Member (Customs Intelligence & Audit) Ministry of Agriculture and Forests National Board of Revenue, Dhaka

Mr. Nasir Arif Mahmud Mr. Palden Dorjee Joint Secretary General Manager Ministry of Shipping Forwarders and Clearing Agent

Mr. AKM Akhter Hossain Mr. Sonam Dorji President Business Promotion Officer Chittagong Customs Clearing & Forwarding Agents Bhutan Chamber of Commerce and Industry Association, Agrabad, C/A GOVERNMENT OF INDIA Mr. M. Nurul Amin Deputy Director (CM) Mr. Devendra Kumar Singh Bangladesh Standard Testing Institute (BSTI) Additional Director General of Foreign Trade Directorate General of Foreign Trade Ministry of Commerce and Industry Mr. AHM Ahsan Trade Consultant (Deputy Secretary) Mr. Sunil Kumar Das Ministry of Commerce Commissioner of Customs Office of the Commissioner of Customs Mr. Afsarul Arifeen Additional Secretary Mr. N. Venkatesh The Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Additional Director General Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) Systems Directorate

GOVERNMENT OF BHUTAN Mr. Prabir De Senior Fellow Mr. Choiten Wangchuk Research and Information System for Director General, Department of Public Accounts Developing Countries (RIS), and Ministry of Finance ASEAN-India Centre

Mr. Sonam Wangchuk GOVERNMENT OF NEPAL Director, Department of Trade Ministry of Economic Affairs Mr. Navaraj Dhakal Under Secretary Mr. Choyzang Tashi Ministry of Commerce and Supplies Director, Department of Revenue and Customs Ministry of Finance Mr. Damber Bahadur Karki Under Secretary Ministry of Physical Planning and Transport

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ASIAN DEVELOPMENT BANK (ADB) Mr. Rajan Sharma President Mr. Ronald Antonio Butiong Nepal Freight Forwarders Association (NEFFA) Principal Regional Cooperation Specialist SARC, South Asia Regional Department Mr. Sarad Bickram Rana Executive Director Mr. Cuong Minh Nguyen Nepal Intermodal Transport Development Board Senior Economist (Regional Cooperation) SARC, South Asia Regional Department

WORLD CUSTOMS ORGANIZATION Ms. Rosalind McKenzie ASIA PACIFIC REGIONAL OFFICE FOR Regional Cooperation Specialist CAPACITY BUILDING (ROCB A/P) SARC, South Asia Regional Department

Mr. Yoshihiro Kosaka Ms. Aileen Pangilinan Head Associate Programs Officer WCO (ROCB A/P) SARC, South Asia Regional Department

Mr. Sekhar Bonu Mr. Jesusito Tranquilino Director Regional Cooperation and Integration Expert SARC, South Asia Regional Department SARC, South Asia Regional Department [email protected] Mr. Lawanya Kumar Dhakal, Ms. Linel Ann Reyes-Tayag Director Operations Assistant Department of Customs SARC, South Asia Regional Department

Mr. Parashu Ram Adhikari Mohammad Ehteshmaul Hoque Senior Plant Protection Officer National Trade Facilitation Expert-Bangladesh Ministry of Agriculture and Development SARC, South Asia Regional Department

Achyut Bhandari RESOURCE PERSONS National Trade Facilitation Expert-Bhutan SARC, South Asia Regional Department Mr. Takashi Matsumoto External Relations Coordinator Shyam Dahal Office of the Secretary General National Trade Facilitation Expert-Nepal World Customs Organization SARC, South Asia Regional Department

Ms. Pavaran Tanmesin UNESCAP Director Krabi Customs House Mr. Yann Duval Chief, Trade Facilitation Unit Mr. Sanghyup Lee Trade and Investment Division Director Clearance Facilitation Section Mr. Tengfei Wang Seoul Main Customs Economic Affairs Officer Republic of Korea Trade Facilitation Unit Trade and Investment Division

Mr. Fedor Kormilitsyn Economic Affairs Officer Transport Division

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A2. National Workshop on Trade and Transport Facilitation Monitoring Mechanism Dhaka, Bangladesh, 28-29 April 2014

Mr. Shah Zahirul Islam Mr. Md. Jamal Uddin Ahmed Additional DG (Operation) Joint Secretary, Roads Division Ministry of Railway Ministry of Communication Mrs. Sirat Mahmuda Mr. Abdus Sattar Sheikh Assistant Chief Deputy Secretary Ministry of Shipping Ministry of Commerce Mr. Tapan Kumar Chakravorty Mr. Mohammad Khairul Alam Additional Secretary Assistant Controller Bangladesh Land Port Authority Chief Controller, Import & Export Mr. Md. Maniruzzaman Mr. Md. Abdul Alim Chief Planning Assistant Commissioner Chittagong Port Authority National Board of Revenue Ms. Begum Rahima Akter Mr. Chapal Chakmay Information Officer Assistant Commissioner Export Promotion Bureau National Board of Revenue Mr. Rama Dewan Mr. Muhammad Imtiaz Hassan Deputy Chief Assistant Commissioner Bangladesh Tariff Commission National Board of Revenue Mr. Nora Alam Siddique Mr. Md. Shahinur Kabir Pavel Deputy Secretary Assistant Commissioner Economic Relations Division National Board of Revenue Mrs. Ifrat Ara Bagom Mr. Mohammad Mahbub Hasan Deputy Secretary Assistant Commissioner Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of National Board of Revenue Commerce and Industry

Mr. Mohammad Mostofa Jamal Haider Deputy Commissioner Tax Mr. Md. Sheikh Mohammad Farid National Board of Revenue President Dhaka Customs Agent Association Mr. Mohammed Shaha Alam Assistant Commissioner Tax Dr. Mostafa Abid Khan National Board of Revenue Director (Programme,Research and Policy Advocacy) Mr. Md Jahangir Alam Assistant Commissioner Tax Dr. Mohammad Abu Yusuf National Board of Revenue Senior Fellow

Mr. Md. Shaifur Rahaman Mr. Mohammad Farhad Assistant Commissioner Tax Research Fellow National Board of Revenue Mr. Md. Shoaib Akhtar Mrs. Roksana Tarannum Research Associate Senior Assistant Secretary Ministry of Environment and Forest Ms. Seikh Ruksana Burhan Research Associate Mr. Anisur Rahman Senior Assistant Secretary Mr. Ismat Jarin Dina Ministry of Industries Research Associate

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Tengfei Wang RESOURCE PERSONS Economic Affairs Officer Dr. Somnuk Keretho Trade Facilitation Director Trade and Investment Division Institute for Information Technology Innovation Faculty of Engineering Fedor Kormilitsyn Kasetsart University, Thailand Economic Affairs Officer Transport Facilitation and Logistics Section Mr. Shigeaki Katsu Transport Division Trainer Customs Institute of Japan ASIAN DEVELOPMENT BANK Ministry of Finance Cuong Minh Nguyen Senior Economist (Regional Cooperation) UN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL SARC, South Asia Department COMMISSION FOR ASIA AND THE PACIFIC Mr. Mashuk Hossain Consultant Yann Duval South Asia Department Chief Trade Facilitation Jacqueline Lam Trade and Investment Division Consultant (Trade Economist) South Asia Department

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A3. Trade and Transport Facilitation Monitoring Mechanism (TTFMM) meeting

Shangri-La Hotel, Wuhan, China, 21 October 2015

BANGLADESH Regional Cooperation and Operations Coordination Division (SARC) Mr. Md. Abdul Hakim, First Secretary (Customs South Asia Department Modernization), National Board of Revenue Dhaka, Bangladesh Mr. Achyut Bhandari BHUTAN National Trade Facilitation Expert Independent of ADB for Bhutan Mr. Sonam Phuntsho Wangdi, Joint Secretary, Thimphu, Bhutan Ministry of Economic Affairs, Thimphu, Bhutan Mr. Mohammad Farhad Mr. Dhendup, Deputy Collector, Regional Revenue ADB Consultant/Customs Expert and Customs Office, Department of Revenue and Asian Development Bank (ADB) Customs, Phuentsholling, Bhutan Dhaka, Bangladesh

Mr. Kesang Yeshey, Assistant Collector, Regional Mr. Sarad Bickram Rana Revenue and Customs Office, Department of National National Customs Procures Expert Revenue and Customs, Phuentsholling, Bhutan Asian Development Bank (ADB) Kathmandu, Nepal INDIA Dr. Posh Pandey Mr. Zubair Riaz Kamili, Additional Commissioner, Chairman Customs Commissionerate, New Delhi South Asia Watch on Trade Economics and Environment (SAWTEE) Mr. Prabir De, Professor, India habitat Centre, Zone Kathmandu, Nepal 4B, Lodhi Road, New Delhi, India ______NEPAL ESCAP Mr. Toya Narayan Gyawali, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Commerce and Supplies, Kathmandu Mr. Tengfei Wang Economic Affairs Officer Mr. Bishnu Prasad Paudel, Director, Customs Department, Kathmandu, Nepal

Mr. Ananta Prasad Timsina, Customs Reform and Modernization Section, Department of Customs, Kathmandu, Nepal

Mr. Sharma Rajan, President, Nepal Freight Forwarders Association and Member of Nepal Trade & Transport Facilitation Committee, Kathmandu, Nepal

INTERNATIONAL TRADE CENTRE (ITC)

Mr. Mohammad Saeed Senior Advisor on Trade Facilitation

ASIAN DEVELOPMENT BANK (ADB)

Ms. Rosalind McKenzie Regional Cooperation Specialist

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A4. Workshop for the Implementation of TTFMM Baseline Studies

Bangkok, Thailand, 13-15 January 2016

BANGLADESH

Mr. Md. Firoz Shah Alam Ms. Tshering Choden Member (Customs: Audit, Modernisation & Intl. Executive Director Trade) Bhutan Clearing and Forwarding Agent National Board of Revenue INDIA Mr. Md. Abdur Rob Deputy Secretary Mr. Kundan Kumar Ministry of Commerce Superintendent Department of Revenue (CBEC) Mr. Hasan Mohammad Tarek Rikabder Ministry of Finance Joint Commissioner Customs Excise & Vat commissionarate, NEPAL Mr. Md. Enamul Hoque Assistant Commissioner Mr. Jib Raj Koirala Customs Excise & Vat commissionarate Joint Secretary International Trade Relations Ministry of Commerce & Supplies Mr. Md. Sayeduzzaman Sayed Sayed Enterprise (Clearing & Forwarding Agent, Mr. Mimangsa Adhikari Import and Export, and Transport) President, Director Burimari C&F Agents Association Customs Reforms & Modernization Section Department of Customs

Mr. Md. Rezaul Karim Mr. Nirmal Kumar Mainali C&F Agent, Freight Forwarder & Customs Officer Importer-Exporter Birgunj Customs President, Banglabandha C&F Agents Association Kumar Bhattarai Director, Panchagrah Chamber of Commerce & Customs Officer Industry Mechi Customs Office

BHUTAN Mr.Rajan Sharma President Mr. Karma Drukpa Nepal Freight Fowarders Association Regional Director Regional Trade and Industry Office UNESCAP

Mr. Pema Wangchen Mr. Yann Duval Joint Commissioner Chief, Trade Facilitation Unit Liaison and Transit Office Trade and Investment Division Royal Bhutan Customs Office Mr. Tengfei Wang Mr. Tandin Wangchhen Economic Affairs Officer Joint Collector Customs and Excise Division ASIAN DEVELOPMENT BANK (ADB) Department of Revenue and Customs Ms. Aileen Pangilinan Ms. Deki Gyamtsho Programs Officer Deputy Collector South Asia Department Regional Revenue and customs Office Department of Revenue and Customs Mr. Acyut Bhandari

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ADB Consultant Mr. Prabir De Mr. Phuntsho Wangdi ADB Consultant ADB Consultant Mr. Mohammad Farhad Dr. Posh Pandey ADB Consultant ADB Consultant Ms. Leticia de Leon ADB Consultant

Mr. Sarad Bickam Rana Ms. Alona Mae Agustin ADB Consultant ADB Consultant

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A5. National Validation workshop on Baseline Study of Trade and Transport Facilitation Monitoring Mechanism (TTFMM)

Dhaka, Bangladesh, 31 July – 1 August 2016

1.Mr. Md. Firoz Shah Alam, Member, National Board 17. Mr. Razvee Ahmed, Assistant Commissioner, of Revenue Banglabandha LC Station 18. Ms. Iftekhar jahan, Assistant Commissioner, 2.Mr. Mohammad Zakir Hossain, Joint Secretary, Sonamasjid LC Station Ministry of Agriculture 19. Mr. Md. Motiar Rahman, Assistant 3. Ms.Nasreen Afroz, Director, Prime Minister's Commissioner, Burimari LC Station office 20. Mr. Sheikh Md. Farid, President, Dhaka Customs 4. Ms. Sultana Yasmin, Deputy Secretary, Road Agents Association Transport and Highways Division 21. Mr. Mahbub Alam, Commercial Manager, Pran 5. Mr. Md. Jasim Uddin Badol, Deputy Secretary, RFL Group Ministry of Industries 22. Mr. Biplop Kumar Saha, Proprietor, M/S Pinky 6. Mr. Muhammad Anisur Rahman, Bangladesh Bank Enterprise (Exporter of plastic Tableware)

7. Mr. Md. Nurul Haque, Sonali Bank Ltd. 23. Mr. Md. Salauddin Sikder, Assistant General Manager, M/S Durable Plastic Ltd (Exporter of plastic 8. Mr. Md. Abdul Hakim, First Secretary, National tableware) Board of revenue 24. Mr. Farhad Sorif, Commercial Manager, National 9. Mr. Hasan Mohammad Tarek Rikabder, Joint Fittings and Accessories Ltd. Commissioner, Customs, Excise and VAT, Commissionerate, Rangpur 25. Mr. Md. Zahid Hossain, Importer of Lentils

10. Ms. Sirat Mahmuda, Senior Assistant Chief, 26. Mr. A.K.M. Murad, Proprietor, M/S Shoshi Ministry of Shipping Traders

11. Mr.Muhammad Minhaz Uddin Pahloan, Second 27. Mr. Alauddin Babu, Proprietor, M/S Nayan Secretary, National Board of revenue International

12. Mr. Anis Ahmed Ndc, Director (Traffic), 28. Mr. Ajoy Dhor, Proprietor, MIS Trade Syndicate Bangladesh Land Port Authority 29. Mr. Tengfei Wang, Economic Affairs Officer, 13. Ms. Rabeya Akter, Senior Assistant Secretary, UNESCAP Economic Relations Division (ERD) 30. Mr. Prabir De, Researcher, Research and 14. Mr. Md. Ziaur Rahman, Assistant Controller, Information System for Developing Countries (RIS), Ministry of Commerce India

15. Mr. Manzur Ahmed, Advisor, FBCCI 31. Mr. Mohammad Farhad, National consultant, ADB 16. Mr. Syed Md. Bakhtiar, Director-Ports & Customs, Bangladesh Freight Forwarders Association 32. Mr. Mashuk Al Hossain, National consultant, ADB

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Appendix 2. Questionnaire for TRS data collection in Banglabandha LCS

Bangladesh Time Release Study 2016 Banglabandha TRS – Export

(*)= Mandatory – if indicated for a section, mandatory questions for the section, mandatory questions for the section must be completed/ if indicated for a question, the question must be completed if the section is used Section A – TRS Data (*) 1. Name of Exporter 2. VAT Registration Number (BIN) 3. Name of C&F Agent 4. Bill of Export Number and Date 5. Manifest /Car pass Number and date 6. Name of Product 7. HS Code (declared) 8. Country of Export Section B – Bill of Export 9. Date and Time of C&F Agent submits hard copy of Bill of Export and all other documents to day mth hr min customs 10. Date and Time of customs assign Bill of Export number (Manual) day mth hr min 11. Date and Time of C&F Agent delivers Bill of Export file to Revenue Officer/Assistant day mth hr min Commissioner 12. COMMENT: Use this section to record any extra ordinary circumstances that affected the time

taken in Section B

Section C – Land Port Shed 13. Date and Time of arrival of consignment at land port yard and entry day mth hr min 14. Date and Time of taking weight of loaded truck at the land port day mth hr min 15. COMMENT: Use this section to record any extra ordinary circumstances that affected the time taken in the Land Port Shed

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Section D – Examination 16. Date and Time of Revenue Officer/Assistant Commissioner assigns Examination Officer and day mth hr min Assessment Officer 17. Date and Time of Assistant Revenue Officer (Examination Officer) obtains samples for day mth hr min examination 18. Date and Time of Assistant Revenue Officer (Examination Officer)completes examination day mth hr min and put reports 19. Examination and samples in accordance with YES ☐ NO ☐ declaration INSTRUCTION: If answer to above is YES, go to question 23 20. If examination differs from declaration, date and time findings are noted in file day mth hr min 21. Date and time of further examination – commences day mth hr min 22. Date and time of further examination – ends day mth hr min 23. Date and Time of Assistant Revenue Officer returns file to C&F Agent day mth hr min 24. COMMENT: Use this section to record any extra ordinary circumstances that affected the time taken in Section D Section E– Assessment 25. Date and time of C&F Agent submits Bill of Export and documents Assistant Revenue Officer day mth hr min (Assessment Officer) 26. Date and time of Assistant Revenue Officer (Assessment Officer) completes assessment and day mth hr min provides assessment report 27. COMMENT: Use this section to record any extra ordinary circumstances that affected the time taken in Section E Section F – Payment of Duty and Taxes (If Any) 28. Date and time of C&F Agent pays assessed duty (if any) and VAT and AIT on C& Agent day mth hr min Service charge at bank by TR Challan 29. COMMENT: Use this section to record any extra ordinary circumstances that affected the time taken in Section F Section G– Customs Release 30. Date and time of C&F Agent submits documents to Customs for release day mth hr min 31. Date and time of Assistant Revenue Officer print Customs Release Order (Car Pass) day mth hr min 32. COMMENT: Use this section to record any extra ordinary circumstances that affected the time taken in Section H Section H – Port Authority Release 33. Date and time of C&F Agent submits Customs Release Order to Land Port official day mth hr min

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34. Date and time of C&F Agent pays port dues to Land Port Authority day mth hr min 35. COMMENT: Use this section to record any extra ordinary circumstances that affected the time

taken in Section H Section I – Zero Point 36. Date and time of entry at exit gate and Truck exits Bangladesh day mth hr min 37. Date and time of Revenue Officer Re-Check the file and finalize the file. day mth hr min 38. COMMENT: Use this section to record any extra ordinary circumstances that affected the time taken in Section I 39. Any Additional Comment (if any)

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বা廬লাদেশ টাইম রিরলজ ষ্টারি (綿আিএস)-২০১৬ -বা廬লাবাা 綿আিএস - িপ্তারি প্ররিয়া-

জরিদেি উদেশয: এরশয়াি উয়ি বযা廬ক (ADB)এব廬 জারিস廬দেি এশীয় এব廬 প্রশান্ত মহাসাগিীয় করমশি (UNESCAP), বা廬লাদেশ জািীয় িাজস্ব ববািড (NBR) বক বা廬লাবাা লবন্দদি টাইম রিরলজ ষ্টারি েরিচালিায় সহদ ারগিা কিদে। এই জিীদেি উদেশয হদলা আমোরি ও িপ্তারি েণ্য োড়কিণ্ (রিরলজ) কিাি বেদে ব অরিরিক্ত সময় লাদগ িা রচরিি কিা। এই জিীদেি প্রাপ্ত ফলাফল এ সম প্ররিবকিা েিূ কিাি বেদে বযবি হদব। থা থভাদব প্রশ্নমালা েিূ দণ্ সহদ ারগিাি জিয আেিাদক অস廬খ্য ধিযবাে । (*) = বাধযিামূলক

বসকশি এ – 綿 আি এস িথয (*) ১। রপ্তানিকারককর িাম ২। VAT Registration Number (BIN) ৩। নিএন্ডএফএকে ন্ট এর িাম ৪। নিল অি এক া쇍ট -এর িম্বর এিং তানরখ ৫। LC/TT/Sales contract এর এিং তানরখ ৬। কযের িাম ৭। এইচএি ককাড (HS Code) ৮। Country of Export

বসকশি রব- রবল অফ এক্সদোটড

৯ নিএন্ডএফ একেন্ট কততট ক কাষ্টমকির নিক쇍 নিল অফ নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 এক া쇍ট -এর মূলকন িহ িংনিষ্ট কাগে ত্র েমাদাকির তানরখ ও িময়

১০ কাষ্টমি কততট কততট ক নিল অি এক া쇍ট এর নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 িম্বর প্রদাকির তানরখ ও িময় (Manual)

১১ নিএন্ডএফ একেন্ট কততট ক নিল অি এক া쇍ট ফাইল নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 রােস্ব কমটকতটা/িহকারী কনমশিারকক প্রদাকির তানরখ ও িময় ১২ ককমন্ট( িক্তিে): যনদ কিকশি নি কত ককাি নিকশষ িা অস্বাভানিক কারকয নিলম্ব হয়, তা এই অংকশ নলন িদ্ধ হকি। বসকশি রস- লযান্ড বোটড বসি ( ) ১৩ স্থল িন্দর ইয়াকডট মালামাল কিিাইিকমন্ট আগমি নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 এিং প্রকিশ নলন িদ্ধ করারতানরখ ও িময় (Weighing Bridge) ১৪ ওেি কিতুকত মালমাল কিাঝাই নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 (কলাকডড) ট্রাক ওেি করার তানরখ ও িময় ১৫ ককমন্ট (িক্তিে):যনদ লোন্ড ক া쇍ট কিকড ককাি নিকশষ িা অস্বাভানিক কারকয নিলম্ব হয়, তা এই অংকশ নলন িদ্ধ হকি।

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বসকশি রি- েিীো (Examination) / ১৬ রােস্ব কমটকতটা িহকারী কনমশিার কততট ক রীা নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 (Examination) এিং একিিকমন্ট (Assessment) করার েিে িহকারী রােস্ব কমটকতটা (ARO) কদর নিযুক্ত (Assign) করার তানরখ ও িময় (Examination Officer) ১৭ িহকারী রােস্ব কমটকতটা নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 কততট ক িমুিা গ্রহয/ রীা �রুর তানরখ ও িময় (Examination Officer) ১৮ িহকারী রােস্ব কমটকতটা নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 রীা িম্পন্ন নরকককর া쇍ট প্রদাকির তানরখ ও িময় ১৯ কঘাষযার (Declaration) িাকে িমুিা ও রীার হো িা ফলাফকলর নমল াওয়া কগকে রিদেডশিা: যনদ উ করাক্ত প্রকের উত্তর হো হয় তকি িরািনর ২৩ িম্বর প্রকের উওর প্রদাি করুি

২০ যনদ কঘাষযার িাকে রীার ফলাফকল নভন্নতা হয় নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 তাহকল তা ফাইকল নলন িদ্ধকরা র তানরখ ও িময় : - ২১ ুি রীার তানরখ ও িময় �রু নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 : - ২২ ুি রীার তানরখ ও িময় কশষ নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 (Examination Officer) ২৩ িহকারী রােস্ব কমটকতটা নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 কততট ক নিএন্ডএফ একেন্টকক ফাইল কফরত প্রদাকির তানরখ ও িময় ২৪ ককমন্ট (িক্তিে):যনদ কিকশি নড-কত ককাি নিকশষ িা অস্বাভানিক কারকয নিলম্ব হয়, তা এই অংকশ নলন িদ্ধ হকি। বসকশি ই -মলূ যায়ি (এদসসদমন্ট)

২৫ নিএন্ডএফ একেন্ট কততট ক ফাইল িহকারী রােস্ব নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 কমটকতটার (Assessment Officer) নিক쇍 প্রদাকির তানরখ ও িময়

২৬ িহকারী রােস্ব কমটকতট া কততট ক একিিকমন্ট িম্পন্ন নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 ককর একিিকমন্ট নরক া쇍ট প্রদাি করার তানরখ ও িময় ২৭ ককমন্ট (িক্তিে): যনদ কিকশি ই-কত ককাি নিকশষ িা অস্বাভানিক কারকয নিলম্ব হয়, তা এই অংকশ নলন িদ্ধ হকি। বসকশি এফ- �ল্ক এব廬 কি প্রোি ( ) ২৮ ধাযটকত ত শল্কূ এিং কর যনদ োকক এিং নিএন্ডএফ নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 Service Charge এর উ র ধাযটকত ত VAT এিং AIT 綿আর (TR)চালাকির মাধেকম িোংকক েমা করকযর তানরখ ও িময় ২৯ ককমন্ট (িক্তিে): যনদ কিকশি এফ-কত ককাি নিকশষ িা অস্বাভানিক কারকয নিলম্ব হয়, তা এই অংকশ নলন িদ্ধ হকি। বসকশি রজ–কাষ্টমস অবমুক্ত (কাষ্টমস রিরলজ) (TR) ৩০ নিএন্ডএফএ কেন্ট কততট ক 綿আর চালাকির কন নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 কাষ্টমকির নিক쇍 েমা প্রদাকির তানরখ ও িময়

৩১ িহকারীরােস্ব কমটকতট া কততট ক কাষ্টমি অিমক্তু নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍

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আকদশ (Car Pass/ Release Order) মুদ্রকির তানরখ ও িময় ৩২ ককমন্ট (িক্তিে):যনদ কিকশি নে-কত ককাি নিকশষ িা অস্বাভানিক কারকয নিলম্ব হয়, তা এই অংকশ নলন িদ্ধ হকি। বসকশি এইচ-ল বন্দি কিডত েে

৩৩ স্থল িন্দর কমটকতটার নিক쇍 কাষ্টমি অিমুক্ত আকদশ নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 (Car Pass/Release Order) নিএন্ডএফ একেন্ট কততট ক েমা করার তানরখ ও িময় 8 (Fees) ৩ নিএন্ডএফ কততট ক স্থলিন্দকরর াওিা েমার নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 তানরখ ও িময় ৩৫ ককমন্ট (িক্তিে): যনদ কিকশি এইচ কত ককাি নিকশষ িা অস্বাভানিক কারকয নিলম্ব হয়, তা এই অংকশ নলন িদ্ধ হকি। বসকশি আই- রজদিা েদয়ন্ট

৩৬ নেকরা কয়কন্ট কার াশ নলন িদ্ধ করারতানরখ ও নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 িময় এিং িাংলাকদশ হকত ট্রাক এর প্রস্থাি : ৩৭ রােস্ব কমটকতট া কততট ক ফাইল ুি মূলোয়ি এিং নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 চুড়ান্ত করার তানরখ ও িময় ৩৮ ককমন্ট (িক্তিে): যনদ কিকশি আই কত ককাি নিকশষ িা অস্বাভানিক কারকয নিলম্ব হয়, তা এই অংকশ নলন িদ্ধ হকি। ৩৯ অরিরিক্তবক্তবয ( রে থাদক)

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Bangladesh Time Release Study 2016 Banglabandha TRS – Import

Purpose of Survey The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) is supporting the National Board of Revenue, Bangladesh to conduct a Time Release Study in order to identify bottlenecks in the release process that negatively affect the time taken to release cargo. The results of this study will be used to eliminate such bottlenecks. Your co-operation in accurately completing this questionnaire is appreciated. (*)= Mandatory – if indicated for a section, mandatory questions for the section, mandatory questions for the section must be completed/ if indicated for a question, the question must be completed if the section is used Section A – TRS Data (*) 1. Name of Importer 2. VAT Registration Number (BIN) 3. Name of C&F Agent 4. Bill of Entry Number and Date 5. Manifest Number and Date 6. Name of Product 7. HS Code (declared) 8. Country of Origin Section B –Bill of Entry Record 9. Date and time of C&F Agent submits all import documents to Customs day mth hr min 10. Date and time of Customs assigns Bill of Entry number (Manual) day mth hr min 11. COMMENT: Use this section to record any extra ordinary circumstances that affected the time taken in the Bill of Entry Record Process Section C – Zero Point 12. Date and time of submission and Entry of Car Pass at Zero Point day mth hr min 13. Date and time of taking weight of loaded truck at the weighing bridge day mth hr min 14. COMMENT: Use this section to record any extra ordinary circumstances that affected the time taken in the Zero Point Section D – Examination 15. Date and time of C&F Agent delivers Bill of Entry file to Revenue Officer/Assistant day mth hr min Commissioner 16. Date and time of Revenue Officer/ Assistant Commissioner to assign Examination and Assessment Officers for examination and day mth hr min Assessment 17. Date and time of Assistant Revenue Officer (Examination Officer) obtains samples/ day mth hr min examination

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18. Date and time of Assistant Revenue Officer (examination Officer) completes examination day mth hr min and put up reports 19. Examination and samples in accordance with YES ☐ NO ☐ declaration INSTRUCTION: If answer to above is YES, go to question 23 20. If examination differs from declaration, date and time findings are noted in file day mth hr min 21. Date and time of further examination – commences day mth hr min 22. Date and time of further examination – ends day mth hr min 23. Date and time of Examination Officer returns file to C&F Agent day mth hr min 24. COMMENT: Use this section to record any extra ordinary circumstances that affected the time taken in Section D Section E – Port Authority Area 25. Date and time of unloading of truck – commence day mth hr min 26. Date and time of unloading of truck – ends day mth hr min 27. Date and time of taking weight of unloaded truck at the weighing bridge day mth hr min 28. Date and time of Customs receive Car Pass and Weight Slip from weighing bridge day mth hr min 29. COMMENT: Use this section to record any extra ordinary circumstances that affected the time taken in Section E Section F – Assessment 30. Date and time of C&F Agent submits Bill of Entry and documents to Assistant Revenue day mth hr min Officer (Assessment Officer) 31. Date and time of Assistant Revenue Officer (Assessment Officer) completes assessment and day mth hr min provides assessment report 32. Date and time of Revenue Officer recheck duty and finalize assessment day mth hr min 33. COMMENT: Use this section to record any extra ordinary circumstances that affected the time taken in Section F Section G – Payment of Duty and Taxes 34. Date and time of C&F Agent pays assessed duty at bank by TR Challan day mth hr min 35. COMMENT: Use this section to record any extra ordinary circumstances that affected the time taken in Section G Section H – Customs Release 36. Date and time of Date and time C&F Agent submits copy of TR Challan to Customs day mth hr min 37. Date and time of Assistant Revenue Officer examine TR Challan and Send file Revenue day mth hr min Officer for Out Pass

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38. Date and time of Revenue Officer provide Customs Release Order (Out Pass) day mth hr min 39. COMMENT: Use this section to record any extra ordinary circumstances that affected the time taken in Section H Section I – Port Authority Release 40. Date and time of C&F Agent submits Customs Release Order to Land Port officials day mth hr min 41. Date and time of C&F Agent pays port dues to Land port Authority day mth hr min 42. Date and time of entry at exit gate and Truck exits day mth hr min 43. COMMENT: Use this section to record any extra ordinary circumstances that affected the time taken in Section I 44. Additional Comments (If any):

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বা廬লাদেশ টাইম রিরলজ ষ্টারি (綿আিএস)-২০১৬ -বা廬লাবাা 綿আিএস - আমোরি প্ররিয়া-

জরিদেি উদেশয:

এরশয়াি উয়ি বযা廬ক (ADB) এব廬 জারিস廬দেি এশীয় এব廬 প্রশান্ত মহাসাগিীয় করমশি (UNESCAP), বা廬লাদেশ জািীয় িাজস্ব ববািড (NBR) বক বা廬লাবাা লবন্দদি টাইম রিরলজ ষ্টারি েরিচালিায় সহদ ারগিা কিদে। এই জিীদেি উদেশয হদলা আমোরি ও িপ্তারি েণ্য োড়কিণ্ (রিরলজ) কিাি বেদে ব অরিরিক্ত সময়লাদগ িা রচরিি কিা। এই জিীদেি প্রাপ্ত ফলাফল এ সম প্ররিবকিা েূি কিাি বেদে বযবি হদব। থা থ ভাদব প্রশ্নমালা েূিদণ্ সহদ ারগিাি জিয আেিাদক অস廬খ্য ধিযবাে । (*) = বাধযিামূলক

বসকশি এ – 綿আিএস িথয(*) ১। আমদানিকারক এর িাম ২। VAT Registration Number (BIN) ৩। নিএন্ডএফএকে ন্ট এরিাম ৪। নিল অি এনি–এর িম্বর এিং তানরখ ৫। L/C-এর িম্বর এিং তানরখ ৬। কযের িাম ৭। এইচএিককাড (HS Code) ৮। Country of Origin

বসকশি রব - বমরিদফষ্ট শাখ্া/ রবল অফ এরি (Bill of Entry) রলরেবদ্ধকিি

৯ নিএন্ডএফএ কেন্ট কততট ক কমনিকফষ্ট শাখায় আমদানির িকল নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 কাগে ত্র (ড嗁কমন্ট) েমাকরকযর তানরখ ও িময় ১০ কাষ্টমিক ততট ক নিল অি এনি িম্বর প্রদাকিরতানরখ ও নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 িময় (Manual) ১১ ককমন্ট (িক্তিে):যনদ কিকশি নি কত ককাি নিকশষ িা

অস্বাভানিক কারকয নিলম্ব হয়, তা এই অংকশ নলন িদ্ধ হকি। বসকশি রস - রজদিা েদয়ন্ট

১২ নেকরা কয়কন্ট কার াশ েমা/নলন িদ্ধ করারতানরখ ও নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 িময় (নেকরা কয়ন্ট)

১৩ স্থলিন্দকরর কগ쇍 নদকয় মালমাল কিাঝাই (কলাকডড) ট্রাক নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 ওেি কিতুকত (Weighing Bridge) আগমি ও ওেি করার তানরখ ও িময় ১৪ ককমন্ট (িক্তিে):যনদ নেকরা কয়ন্ট ককাি নিকশষ িা

অস্বাভানিককারকয নিলম্ব হয়, তা এই অংকশ নলন িদ্ধ হকি। বসকশি রি - েিীো (Examination)

১৬ নিএন্ডএফ একেন্ট কততট ক নিল অি এনি (BoE)ফাইল রােস্ব নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 কমটকতটা / িহকারী কনমশিাকরর নিক쇍 েমা করার তানরখ ও িময় ১৭ রােস্ব কমটকতটা / িহকারী কনমশিার কততট ক রীা নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 (Examination) এিং একিিকমন্ট (Assessment) করার

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েিে িহকারী রােস্ব কমটকতটা (ARO) কদর নিযুক্ত (Assign) করার তানরখ ও িময়

১৮ িহকারী রােস্ব কমটকতটা( Examination Officer) কতট ক ত নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 িমুিা গ্রহয/ রীা �রুর তানরখ ও িময় ১৯ িহকারী রােস্ব কমটকতটা( Examination Officer) রীা নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 িম্পন্ন ককর নরক া쇍ট প্রদাকির তানরখ ও িময়

১৬ কঘাষযার (Declaration) িাকে িমুিা ও রীার হো িা ফলাফকলর নমল াওয়া কগকে রিদেডশিা: যনদ উ করাক্ত প্রকের উত্তর হো হয় তকি িরািনর ২৩ িম্বকরর প্রকের উওর প্রদাি করুি

২০ যনদ কঘাষযার িাকে ফলাফকলর নভন্নতা হয় তাহকল তা নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 ফাইকল নলন িদ্ধ করার তানরখ ও িময় : - ২১ ুি রীার তানরখ ও িময় �রু নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 : - ২২ ুি রীার তানরখ ও িময় কশষ নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 ২৩ িহকারী রােস্ব কমটকতটা (Examination Officer)কততট ক নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 নিএন্ডএফ একেন্টকক ফাইল কফরত প্রদাকির তানরখ ও িময় ২৪ ককমন্ট (িক্তিে):যনদ কিকশি নড ককাি নিকশষ িা অস্বাভানিক কারকয নিলম্ব হয়, তা এই অংকশ নলন িদ্ধ হকি।

বসকশি ই- লবন্দি কিডত েে এলাকা

২৫ ট্রাক হকত মালামাল িামাকিা (আিকলাড)-�রু নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 ২৬ ট্রাকহকত মালামাল িামাকিা (আিকলাড)-কশষ নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 ২৭ স্থলিন্দর কিডলাকা এ হকত খানল (আিকলাকডড) ট্রাক ওেি (Weighing Bridge) কিতুকত আগমি ও ওেি করার নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 তানরখ ও িময়

২৮ ওেি কিতু (Weighing Bridge) হকত কাষ্টমি এর কমনিকফষ্ট নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 শাখায় কার াশ ও ওেি নি প্রানপ্তর তানরখ ও িময় ২৯ ককমন্ট (িক্তিে): যনদ কিকশি ই কত ককাি নিকশষ িা অস্বাভানিক কারকয নিলম্ব হয়, তা এই অংকশ নলন িদ্ধ হকি। বসকশি এফ –মলূ যায়ি/ এদসসদমন্ট( Assessment) ৩০ নিএন্ডএফ একেন্ট কততট ক নিল অি এনি িহ িকল ( ) কাগে ত্র ড嗁কমন্ট িহকারী রােস্ব কমটকতটার নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 (Assessment Officer) নিক쇍 প্রদাকির তানরখ ও িময়

৩১ িহকারী রােস্ব কমটকতট া কততট ক একিিকমন্ট িম্পন্ন ককর নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 একিিকমন্ট নরক া쇍ট প্রদাি করার তানরখ ও িময় : ৩২ রােস্ব কমটকতট া কততট ক �ল্ক ুি মূলোয়ি করা এিং নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 একিিকমন্ট চুড়ান্ত করার তানরখ ও িময় ৩৩ ককমন্ট( িক্তিে):যনদ কিকশি এফ কত ককাি নিকশষ িা অস্বাভানিক কারকয নিলম্ব হয়, তা এই অংকশ নলন িদ্ধ হকি। বসকশি রজ – �ল্ক এব廬 কি প্রোি

৩8 ধাযটকত ত �ল্ক নিএন্ডএফ একেন্ট কততট ক 綿আর (TR) নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 চালাকির মাধেকম িোংকক েমাকরকযর তানরখ ও িময় ৩৫ ককমন্ট (িক্তিে):যনদ কিকশি নে কত ককাি নিকশষ িা অস্বাভানিক কারকয নিলম্ব হয়, তা এই অংকশ নলন িদ্ধ হকি।

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বসকশি এইচ–কাষ্টমস অবমুক্ত কিণ্ (কাষ্টমস রিরলজ)

৩৬ নিএন্ডএফ একেন্ট কততট ক 綿আর (TR)চালাকির কন নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 কাষ্টমকির নিক쇍 েমা প্রদাকির তানরখ ও িময় ৩৭ িহকারী রােস্ব কমটকতটা (Assessment Officer) কততট ক নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 (TR)চালাি যাচাই ককর আউ쇍 াি প্রদাকির েিেরােস্ব কমটকতটা / িহকারী কনমশিাকরর নিক쇍 কপ্ররকির তানরখ ও িময় ( ৩৮ রােস্ব কমটকতট া কততট ক কাষ্টমি োড়করয আকদশ আউ쇍 নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 াি) প্রদাি করার তানরখ ও িময় ৩৯ ককমন্ট( িক্তিে):যনদ কিকশি এইচ-কত ককাি নিকশষ িা

অস্বাভানিক কারকয নিলম্ব হয়, তা এই অংকশ নলন িদ্ধহকি। বসকশি আই-লবন্দি কিডত েে কিডত ক অবমুক্ত কিণ্ (রিরলজ) ৪০ নিএন্ডএফ একেন্ট কততট ক কাষ্টমি োড়করয আকদশ ( ) আউ쇍 াি স্থল িন্দর কমটকতটার নিক쇍 েমা করার নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 তানরখ ও িময়

৪১ নিএন্ডএফ একেন্ট কততট ক স্থলিন্দকরর নফ েমা করার নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 তানরখ ও িময় / ৪২ কাকগটা ট্রাক স্থলিন্দর তোগ করার িময় প্রস্থাি কগক쇍 নদি মাি ঘণ্টা নমনি쇍 (Exit Gate) নলন িদ্ধ করার তানরখ ও িময় ৪৩ ককমন্ট( িক্তিে): যনদ কিকশি আই-কত ককাি নিকশষ িা

অস্বাভানিক কারকয নিলম্ব হয়, তা এই অংকশ নলন িদ্ধ হকি। ৪৪ অরিরিক্ত বক্তবয ( রে থাদক)

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Appendix 3. Photos of Banglabandha Land Port

Banglabandha land port- Zero point Import cargo crossing the Border

Entry of import cargo at Land port gate Weighing Import cargo at weigh station

Assessment of import file by customs official Approval of import file by Assistant Commissioner of Customs

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Appendix 4. Banglabandha Land Port: at a glance

Bangladesh side Banglabandha, Tetulia, Panchagarh Indian side Phulbari, Rajganj, Jalpaiguri, West Bengla India Operator Bangladesh Land Port Authority

Start Date of operation January 22, 2011 Storage capacity 500 MT Land area 10 Acre Infrastructure Ware house-2, Transshipment yard-1, Digital Weigh bridge scale-2 (150 ton each), Administrative buildings-1, Office building-1, labour shed, Security posts, Boundary wall Manpower Administrative personnel 18, Security personnel 7, Principal Import Major import items through this Land Port are Stone Boulder, Rice, Wheat, Maize, Apple, Grapes and Ginger from India; and Lentils, Wheat Bran, Chirata, Hajmola Tablet and Ritha from Nepal. Bangladeshi products are mainly exported to Nepal using this Land Port. Principal Exports Goods are mainly exported to Nepal. Major export items are Fresh Potato, Battery, Cotton knitted Fabrics, Jhoot waste Cotton, Food Products, Plastic and melamine Goods, Medicine, Soft Drinks, Tissue paper, Fabrics, Raw Jute etc.

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Appendix 5. Import Process

IMPORT PROCESS – PORT OF BANGLABANDHA A: OVERVIEW

1. Arrival of 3. Car Pass 4. Port Authority 2. Zero Point Entry truck at border Procedure Area

5. Bill of Entry 8. Payment of Duty Record/Provide Customs 6. Examination 7. Assessment and Taxes Declaration

10. Port Authority 11. Final Release and 9. Customs Release Release Exit of Import goods

IMPORT PROCESS – PORT OF BANGLABANDHA A.1: ZERO POINT ENTRY

3. Car Pass 1. Arrival of truck 2. Submission of Car 4. C&F Agent information entered at border Pass at Zero Point collects Car Pass in ledger

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IMPORT PROCESS – PORT OF BANGLABANDHA A.2: CAR PASS PROCEDURE

2. C&F Agent 1. Customs receives 3. Customs checks 4. Car Pass submits all Import Car Pass Car Pass correct Documents

No Yes

5. Car Pass returned 6. C&F Agent corrects 7. Corrected Car 8. Entry of Car Pass and returns Car Pass to to C&F Agent for Pass approved in Customs Ledger correction Customs

9. Customs retains main copy and C&F

Agent collects photo copy of car pass

IMPORT PROCESS – PORT OF BANGLABANDHA A.3: PORT AUTHORITY AREA

3. Weighing of 1. Arrival of truck at 2. Entry at the Land 4. Loaded Truck at Loaded Truck at the Land Port Gate Port Gate the Land Port Yard Weigh Bridge

5. C&F Agent 6. Import Goods Unloaded 11. Customs Receives Net 7. Weighing of Arranges for and directly loaded onto Weight of Import Goods Unloaded Truck Unloading Bangladeshi truck from Land Port

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IMPORT PROCESS – PORT OF BANGLABANDHA A.4: BILL OF ENTRY RECORD/PROVIDE CUSTOMS DECLARATION

1. C&F Agent Submits Bill of Entry 3. Customs verifies Bill of Entry 4. Bill of Entry with all Import documents to Customs correct and other Import Documents

No Yes

5. Bill of Entry 6. C&F Agent corrects 7. Corrected Bill of 8. Entry of Bill of Entry in returned to C&F and returns Bill of Entry Entry accepted the Ledger (manual) by Agent for correction to Customs Customs

9. Customs assigns Bill of 10. Customs returns Import file Entry (‘C’) Number to the to C&F Agent Bill of Entry

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IMPORT PROCESS – PORT OF BANGLABANDHA A.5: EXAMINATION

1. C&F Agent delivers 2. Revenue Officer assigns Assistant 3. Assistant Revenue Officer File to Revenue Officer Revenue Officer (examination obtains samples for Officer) for examination examination

4. Assistant Revenue 5. Examination No 6. File referred to higher Officer completes findings in accordance authority for review and Examination with declaration adjudication examination Yes

9. C&F agent returns file to 8. C&F agent pays 7. File returned to C&F after Assistant Revenue Officer applicable penalty review and adjudication (Examination Officer)

11. Revenue Officer approves 10. Assistant Revenue Officer examination report puts examination report

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IMPORT PROCESS – PORT OF BANGLABANDHA A.6: ASSESSMENT

2. Revenue Officer assigns Assistant 1. C&F Agent delivers 3. Assistant Revenue Officer Revenue Officer (assessment File to Revenue Officer Completes assessment Officer) for assessment

4. Assistant Revenue Officer 5. Revenue Officer rechecks 6. C&F Agent receives provides assessment report duty and finalizes assessment assessment notice

IMPORT PROCESS – PORT OF BANGLABANDHA A.7: PAYMENT OF DUTY AND TAXES- CUSTOMS RELEASE

1. C&F Agent receives 2. C&F Agent pays assessed duty at 3. C&F Agent copy of TR assessment notice Bank by TR Challan Challan to Customs

4. Assistant Revenue Officer 5. C&F Agent receives prints customs release order customs release order

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IMPORT PROCESS – PORT OF BANGLABANDHA A.8: PORT AUTHORITY RELEASE- FINAL EXIT OF IMPORT GOODS

1. C&F Agent submits Import file to 2. Land Port Authority 3. C&F Agent receives port Land Port Authority calculates port dues dues calculation

4. C&F Agent deposits ports 5. C&F Agent submits bank 6. Land Port Authority verifies dues to Bank receipt to Land Port Authority the documents

7. Gate Pass issued with 8. Entry of date and time at the 9. Truck exits Land Port with joint signatures final exit gate import goods

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Appendix 6. Export Process

EXPORT PROCESS – PORT OF BANGLABANDHA B: OVERVIEW

1. Arrival of truck 2. Submission of Bill 3. Examination 4. Assessment of Export at Land Port

6. Unloading and Loading (in 5. Payment of Duty and Taxes 7. Customs Release case of export to Bhutan)

9. Export goods 8. Port Authority Release crosses border

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EXPORT PROCESS – PORT OF BANGLABANDHA B.1: SUBMISSION OF BILL OF EXPORT /PROVIDE CUSTOMS DECLARATION

1. Export consignment 2. C&F Agent submits Bill 3. Customs 4. Bill of Export of Export and other export verify all Export arrives at land port and correct Entry at Land Port gate documents to Customs documents

No Yes

5. Bill of Export 6. C&F Agent corrects 7. Corrected Bill of 8. Entry of Bill of Export returned to C&F and returns Bill of Export accepted in the Ledger (manual) by Agent for correction Export to Customs Customs

10. Customs returns Export 9. Customs assigns Bill of Export number File to C&F Agent

EXPORT PROCESS – PORT OF BANGLABANDHA B.2: ASSESSMENT

2. Revenue Officer assigns Assistant 1. C&F Agent delivers 3. Assistant Revenue Officer Revenue Officer (assessment File to Revenue Officer Completes assessment Officer) for assessment

4. Assistant Revenue Officer 5. Revenue Officer rechecks 6. C&F Agent receives provides assessment report duty and finalizes assessment assessment notice

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EXPORT PROCESS – PORT OF BANGLABANDHA B.3: EXAMINATION

1. C&F Agent delivers 2. Revenue Officer assigns Assistant 3. Assistant Revenue Officer File to Revenue Officer Revenue Officer (examination obtains samples for Officer) for examination examination

4. Assistant Revenue 5. Examination No 6. File referred to higher Officer completes findings in accordance authority for review and Examination with declaration adjudication examination Yes

9. C&F agent returns file to 8. C&F agent pays 7. File returned to C&F after Assistant Revenue Officer applicable penalty review and adjudication (Examination Officer)

11. Revenue Officer approves 10. Assistant Revenue Officer examination report puts examination report

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EXPORT PROCESS – PORT OF BANGLABANDHA B.4: PAYMENT OF DUTY AND TAXES (if any)- CUSTOMS RELEASE

1. C&F Agent receives 2. C&F Agent pays assessed duty at 3. C&F Agent copy of TR assessment notice Bank by TR Challan (if any) Challan to Customs

4. Assistant Revenue Officer 5. C&F Agent receives prints customs release order customs release order

EXPORT PROCESS – PORT OF BANGLABANDHA B.5: PORT AUTHORITY RELEASE- BORDER CROSSING OF EXPORT GOODS

1. C&F Agent submits Export file to 2. Land Port Authority 3. C&F Agent receives port Land Port Authority calculates port dues dues calculation

4. C&F Agent deposits ports 5. C&F Agent submits bank 6. Land Port Authority verifies dues to Bank receipt to Land Port Authority the documents

7. Gate Pass issued with 8. Entry of date and time at the 9. Truck crosses Bangladesh joint signatures final exit gate border with Export products

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Appendix 7. Time required for the import steps

The questionnaires utilized for this study (see Appendix 5) were divided into sections to capture the time required for completion of various procedures that were applied in importing or exporting goods. These procedures are implemented by Bangladesh Customs, the Bangladesh Land Port Authority, Scheduled Bank and Clearing and Forwarding Agents. The following tables show the results of the data analysis expressed as average times.

The Average Time column shows the average time for each procedure. Consequently, each row should be viewed individually. Where there was no data for a particular interval, it will not be recorded in the table – for instance in the Import questionnaire, there was no data recorded relating to re-examination (questions 20 to 23 for import and questions 14 and questions 20 to 22 for export procedures) consequently nothing on this subject is shown in the tables.

A. IMPORT PROCESSING

Average time taken for release of Import cargo

Intervals Average Time Responsible Body The average time taken in 6 hours 34 minutes 24 Bangladesh Customs, Banglabandha for release of Seconds Bangladesh Land Port all types of Import cargo Authority, Bangladesh Border Guard, Scheduled Bank and C&F Agents

Zero Point Entry

Intervals Average Time Responsible Body The average time taken from 0 hours 25 minutes 32 Customs, Bangladesh Border submission of Car Pass at Seconds Guard and Bangladesh Land Zero Point TO entry into the Port Authority Land Port

Port Authority Area-Weighing and Unloading

Intervals Average Time Responsible Body The average time taken to 1 hours 43 minutes 37 Land Port Authority, unload imported goods and Seconds Importers/C&F Agents load to Bangladeshi truck

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Date and time of taking 4 hours 22 minutes 58 Customs, Land Port weight of loaded truck at the Seconds Authority, Importers/C&F weighing bridge TO Agents completion of weighing of unloaded Truck at the weigh bridge

Bill of Entry Record

Intervals Average Time required Responsible Body Date and time of C&F Agent 0 hours 13 minutes 32 Customs submits Bill of Entry to Seconds Customs TO Customs assigns Bill of Entry number (Manual)

Examination

Intervals Average Time Responsible Body Revenue Officer/Assistant 1 hours 06 minutes 22 Customs Commissioner assigns Seconds Assistant Revenue Officer (examination Officer) for examination TO Assistant Revenue Officer (examination Officer) completes examination and put up reports

Assessment

Intervals Average Time Responsible Body Revenue Officer/Assistant 0 hours 51 minutes 34 Customs Commissioner assigns Seconds Assistant Revenue Officer (Assessment Officer) for examination TO Revenue Officer to recheck duty and finalize assessment

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Payment of Duty and Taxes

Intervals Average Time Responsible Body Revenue Officer finalizes 0 hours 14 minutes 13 Customs, Scheduled Bank assessment TO C&F Agent Seconds submits copy of TR Challan to Customs

Customs Release

Intervals Average Time Responsible Body C&F Agent submits copy of 0 hours 19 minutes 04 Customs TR Challan to Customs TO Seconds Assistant Revenue Officer print Customs Release Order (Out Pass)

Port Authority Release

Intervals Average Time Responsible Body Date and time of C&F Agent 0 hours 18 minutes 34 Land Port Authority submits Customs Release Seconds Order to Land Port Officials TO Date and time of entry at exit gate and Truck exits

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Appendix 8. Time required for the export steps

Average time taken for release of Export cargo*

Intervals Average Time Responsible Body The average time taken in 1 hours 45 minutes 45 Bangladesh Customs, Land Banglabandha for release of Seconds Port Authority, Bangladesh all types of Export cargo Border Guard, Scheduled Bank and C&F Agents

* Since, the interval from Arrival to Release is the primary TRS measure, the above table shows the average time taken in Banglabandha for release of all types of Export cargo from its arrival. Although data shows that the total average time taken for processing all the export documents, which begin with submission of hard copy of Bill of Export and all other documents to customs by the C&F agent to finalization of export file by the Customs requires much more time.

Bill of Export Record

Intervals Average Time Responsible Body Submission of hard copy of 0 hours 16 minutes 51 Bangladesh Custom and C&F Bill of Export and all other Seconds Agents documents to customs by the C&F agent TO customs assign Bill of Export number (Manual)

Examination

Intervals Average Time Responsible Body Revenue Officer/Assistant 0 hours 32 minutes 55 Bangladesh Customs and Commissioner to assign Seconds C&F Agents Assistant Revenue Officer (Examination Officer) for examination TO C&F Agent delivers file to Revenue Officer/Assistant Commissioner with examination result

Assessment

Intervals Average Time Responsible Body C&F Agent submits Bill of 0 hours 27 minutes 11 Bangladesh Customs and Export and documents Seconds C&F Agents

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Assistant Revenue Officer (Assessment Officer) TO Assistant Revenue Officer (Assessment Officer) completes assessment and provides assessment report

Customs Release

Intervals Average Time Responsible Body C&F Agent submits documents 0 hours 6 minutes 32 Bangladesh Customs and to Customs for release TO Seconds C&F Agents Assistant Revenue Officer print Customs Release Order (Car Pass)

Port Authority Release

Intervals Average Time Responsible Body C&F Agent submits Customs 0 hours 12 minutes 41 Land Port Authority and C&F Release Order to Land Port Seconds Agents official TO Export Cargo exits Bangladesh

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