Amendment in Customs Rules, 2001 regarding CMR Rules

72)

GOVERNMENT OF PAKISTAN

(REVENUE DIVISION)

FEDERAL BOARD OF REVENUE

4r******

NOTIFICATION

44,

Islamabad, the 1-1. November, 2022

SRO 2031 (1)/2022.- The following draft of certain further

amendments in the Customs Rules, 2001, which the Federal Board of Revenue

proposes to make in exercise of the powers conferred by sub-sections (1) of

section 219 of the Customs Act, 1969 (IV of 1969), is hereby published for

information of all persons likely to be affected thereby and, as required by sub-

section (3A) of the said section 219, notice is hereby given that objections or

or

suggestions thereon, if any, for the consideration of the Federal Board

Revenue be sent within fifteen days of publications of the draft in the official

Gazette. Objections or suggestions which may be received from any person in

respect of the said draft, before the expiry of the aforesaid period, shall be taken

into consideration by the Federal Board of Revenue, namely:-

In the aforesaid Rules, after Chapter XLI, the following new

chapter shall be added, namely: -

"CHAPTER XLII

Contract for the International Carriage of Goods by Road (CMR) Rules

Short title.- These rules may be called the Contract for the

International Carriage of Goods by Road (CMR).

Scope of the rules: (1) These rules prescribes the procedure For

standardizing the conditions for the international carriage of goods

by road, particularly with respect to the documents used for such

carriage and to the carrier's liability as envisaged under CMR

Convention.

(2) These rules shall apply to every contract for the carriage of goods

by road in vehicles for reward, when the place of taking over of the goods and

the place designated for delivery, as specified in the contract, are situated in two

different countries, of which at least one is a contracting country, irrespective of

the place of residence and the nationality of the parties.

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These rules shall apply also where carriage coming within its scope

is carried out by states or by governmental institutions or organizations.

These rules shall not apply to :-

carriage performed under the terms of any international postal

convention;

funeral consignments; and

furniture removal.

1. Definitions.- (1) In this Chapter, unless there is anything

repugnant in the subject or context,-

"authority" in relation to these rules, means the Federal Board

of Revenue;

"Convention" means the Convention on the Contract for the

International Carriage of Goods by Road (CMR), Geneva 1956,

amended by Protocol to the CMR Geneva, 1978, generally

referred to as ClvIR. Convention;

"CMR consignment note" means an agreement which

regulates contractual relations between consignor, consignee

and the carrier. It is not directly linked to TIR and is a

consignment note which may be requested by national

authorities. It is signed and stamped by the sender and the

carrier and contains fields defined in Rule 986. It will be

considered as a Customs documents in •terms of section 2(kka)

of the Customs Act 1969.

"container" means an article of transport equipment (i) fully

enclosed to constitute a compartment intended for containing

goods, (ii) of a permanent character and accordingly strong

enough to be suitable for repeated use,(iii) specially designed to

facilitate the transport of goods by one or more modes of

transport without intermediate reloading, (iv) designed for ready

handling, particularly when being transferred from one mode of

transport to another. (v) designed to be easy to fill and to empty,

and (vi) demountable bodies are to be treated as containers;

"combination of vehicles" means coupled vehicles, which

travel on the road as a unit;

(0 “contracting party" means consignee or consignor or the

carrier;

"import or export duties and taxes" means Customs duties

and all other duties and taxes, leviable at the time of import or

export under the Customs Act, 1969 and any other law in force

including default surcharge;

"irregularity" means breach, violation, non-observance or

misuse of any provision of these rules;

"national authorization committee" means the committee

headed by the Director Transit Trade, Karachi and comprising

of representatives of the Ministry of Communications. Ministry

of Commerce, Ministry of Interior and the Association, as

notified by the Board;

"person" means both natural and legal persons and includes a

company and association, a body of individuals whether

incorporated or not; and

"road vehicle" means any rigid road vehicle, articulated

vehicle, unaccompanied trailer or semitrailer including any

power-driven road vehicle and any trailer or semi-trailer

designed to be coupled thereto.

1. Contract for carriage of goods: (1) The contract of carriage shall

be confirmed by the making out of a CMR consignment note. It shall be

evidence of making of the contract of carriage under these rules and of the

receipt of the goods by the carrier. It shall be made out in the following four

original copies signed and stamped by the sender and by the carrier:

FIRST ORIGINAL (red) shall be handed over to the sender;

SECOND ORIGINAL (green) to be retained by carrier;

THIRD ORIGINAL (blue) to be delivered to consignee; and

FOURTH ORIGINAL (black) for administrative procedures.

(2) When the goods which are to be carried have to be loaded in

different vehicles, or are of different kinds or are divided into different lots, the

sender or the carrier shall have the right to require a separate consignment note

to be made out for each vehicle used, or for each kind or lot of goods.

1. Information on the CMR consignment note: (I) The

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consignment note shall contain the following mandatory information:

the date of the consignment note and the place at which it is

made out;

the name and address of the sender;

the name and address of the carrier;

the place and the date of taking over of the goods and the place

designated for delivery;

the name and address of the consignee;

description of goods;

PCT code;

container number;

seal number;

kind of packages, the number of packages and their special

marks and numbers;

gross weight in Kgs;

(I) charges relating to the carriage (carriage charges, supplementary

charges, customs duties and other charges incurred from the

making of the contract to the time of delivery);

(in) the requisite instructions for Customs and other formalities; and

(n) a statement that the carriage is subject to the provisions of these

Rules.

(2) Where applicable, the consignment note shall also contain the

following particulars:

a statement that trans-shipment is not allowed;

the charges which the sender undertakes to pay;

the amount of "cash on delivery" charges, if any

a declaration of the value of the goods and the amount

representing special interest in delivery;

the sender's instructions to the carrier regarding insurance of the

goods;

(0 the agreed time limit within which the carriage is to be carried

out,

(g) a list of the documents handed to the carrier.

(3) The parties may enter in the consignment note any other particulars

which they may deem useful,

1. Issuance of OM consignment note.- The CIVER consignment

note shall be issued by the carrier approved by National Authorization

Committee. It shall have information prescribed in rule 986, It shall bear

signatures and stamp of the carrier and the sender/consignor of the goods.

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1. Responsibility of sender.- (1) The sender shall be responsible for

all expenses, toss and damage sustained by the carrier by reason of the

inaccuracy or inadequacy of:

the information specified in rule 986; and

any other particulars or instructions given by him to enable the

consignment note to be made out or for the purpose of their

being entered therein.

(2) If, at the request of the sender, the carrier enters in the

consignment note the particulars referred to in rule 988(1), he shall be deemed,

unless the contrary is proved, to have done so on behalf of the sender.

1. Taking over of the goods by the carrier.- (I) On taking over the

goods, the carrier shall check the accuracy of the statements in the consignment

note as to the number of packages and their marks and numbers, and the

apparent condition of the goods and their packaging.

Where the carrier has no reasonable means of checking the

accuracy of statements referred to in rule 989(1), he shall enter his reservations

in the consignment note together with the grounds on which they are based. He

shall likewise speeitY the grounds for any reservations which he makes with

regard to the apparent condition of the goods and their packaging, such

reservations shall not bind the sender unless he has expressly agreed to be

bound by them in the consignment note.

The sender shall be entitled to require the carrier to check the

gross weight the goods or their quantity otherwise expressed, He may also

require the contents of the packages to be checked. The carrier shall be entitled

to claim the cost of such checking. The result of the checks shall be entered in

the consignment note.

If the consignment note contains no specific reservations by the

carrier, it shall be presumed, unless the contrary is proved, that the goods and

their packaging appeared to be in good condition when the carrier took them

over and that the number of packages, their marks and numbers corresponded

with the statements in the consignment note.

The sender shall be liable to the carrier for damage to persons,

equipment or other goods, and for any expenses due to defective packing of the

goods, unless the defect was apparent or known to the carrier at the time when

he took over the goods and he made no reservations concerning it.

1. Responsibility for true declarations.- (I) For the purposes of the

Customs or other formalities which have to be completed before delivery of the

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goods, the sender shall attach the necessary documents to the consignment note

or place them at the disposal of the carrier and shall furnish him with all the

information which he requires.

The carrier shall not be under any dutv to enquire into either the

accuracy or the adequacy of such documents and information. The sender shall

be liable to the carrier for any damage caused by the absence, inadequacy or

irregularity of such documents and information, except in the case of some

wrongful act or neglect on the part of the carrier.

The liability of the carrier for the consequences arising from the

loss or incorrect use of the documents specified in and accompanying the

consignment note or deposited with the carrier shall be that of an agent

provided that the compensation payable by the carrier shall not exceed that

payable in the event of loss of the goods.

1. Changes allowed to sender before delivery of consignment note

to the consignee: (I) The sender has the right to dispose of the goods, in

particular by asking the carrier to stop the goods in transit, to change the place

at which delivery is to take place or to deliver the goods to a consignee other

than the consignee indicated in the consignment note.

This right shall cease to exist when the second copy of the

consignment note is handed to the consignee or when the consignee exercises

his right under rule 992; from that time onwards the carrier shall obey the orders

of the consignee.

The consignee shall, however, have the right of disposal from the

time when the consignment note is drawn up, if the sender makes an entry to

that effect in the consignment note.

If in exercising his right of disposal the consignee has ordered the

delivery of the goods to another person, that other person shall not be entitled to

name other consignees.

The exercise of the right of disposal shall be subject to the

following conditions:

that the sender or, in the case referred to in rule 991(3), the

consignee who wishes to exercise the right produces the first

copy of the consigtunent note on which the new instructions to

the carrier have been entered and indemnifies the carrier against

all expenses, loss and damage involved in carrying out such

instructions;

that the carrying out of such instructions is possible at the time

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when the instructions reach the person who is to carry them out

and does not either interfere with the normal working of the

carriers' undertaking or prejudice the senders or consignees of

other consignments; and

(c) that the instructions do not result in a division of the

consignment.

When, by reason of the provisions of rule 991(5)(b). the carrier

cannot carry out the instructions which he receives, he shall immediately notify

the person who gave him such instructions.

A carrier who has not carried out the instructions given under the

conditions provided for in this rule or who has carried them out without

requiring the first copy of the consignment note to be produced, shall be liable

to the person entitled to make a claim for any loss or damage caused thereby.

Inability to comply with terms of consignment note: (I) If for

any reason it is or becomes impossible to carry out the contract in accordance

with the terms laid down in the consignment note before the goods reach the

place designated for delivery, the carrier shall ask for instructions from the

person entitled to dispose of the goods in accordance with the provisions of

Rule 991.

(2) Nevertheless, if circumstances are such as to allow the carriage to

be carried out under conditions differing from those laid down in the

consignment note and if the carrier has been unable to obtain instructions in

reasonable time the person entitled to dispose of the goods in accordance with

the provisions of Rule 991, he shall take such steps as seem to him to be in the

best interests the person entitled to dispose of the goods.

Delivery of CMR consignment note to consignee.- (1) After

arrival of the goods at the place designated for delivery, the consignee shall be

entitled to require the carrier to deliver to him, against a receipt, the second

copy of the consignment note and the goods. If the loss of the goods established

or if the goods have not arrived after the expiry of the period provided for in

Rule 998, the consignee shall be entitled to enforce in his own name against the

carrier any rights arising from the contract of carriage.

(2) The consignee who avails himself of the rights granted to him

under rule 993(1) shall pay the charges shown to be due on the consignment

note, hut in the event of dispute on this matter the carrier shall not be required to

deliver the goods unless security has been furnished by the consignee.

Inability to deliver goods at designated place.- (1) Where

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circumstances prevent delivery of the goods after their arrival at the place

designated for delivery, the carrier shall ask the sender for his instructions. If the

consignee refuses the goods, the sender shall be entitled to dispose of them

without being obliged to produce the first copy of the consignment note.

Even if he has refused the goods, the consignee may nevertheless

require delivery so long as the carrier has not received instructions to the

contrary from the sender.

When circumstances preventing delivery of the goods arise after

the consignee, in exercise of his rights under rule 991(3), has given an order for

the goods to be delivered to another person, rule 994(1)84(2) shall apply as if the

consignee were the sender and that other person were the consignee.

1. Recovery of cost by the carrier.- (1) The carrier shall be entitled

to recover the cost of his request for instructions and any expenses entailed in

carrying out such instructions, unless such expenses were caused by the

wrongful act or neglect of the carrier.

In the cases referred to rule 992(1), and rule 994, the carrier may

immediately unload the goods for account of the person entitled to dispose of

them and thereupon the carriage shall be deemed to be at an end. -the carrier

shall then hold the goods on behalf of the person so entitled. He may, however,

entrust them to a third party, and in that case he shall not be under any liability

except for the exercise of reasonable care in the choice of such third party. The

charges due under the consignment note and all other expenses shall remain

chargeable against the goods.

The carrier may sell the goods, without awaiting instructions from

the person entitled to dispose of them, if the goods are perishable or their

condition warrants such a course, or when the storage expenses would be out of

proportion to the value of the goods. He may also proceed to the sale of the

goods in other cases if' after the expiry of a reasonable period he has not

received from the person entitled to dispose of' the goods instructions to the

contrary which he may reasonably be required to carry out.

If the goods have been sold pursuant to this rule, the proceeds of

sale, after deduction of the expenses chargeable against the goods, shall be

placed at the disposal of the person entitled to dispose of the goods. If these

charges exceed the proceeds of sale, the carrier shall be entitled to the

difference.

The procedure in the case of sale shall be determined by the law or

custom of the place where the goods are situated.

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1. Responsibility for damage or loss of goods.- (I) The carrier shall

be liable for the total or partial loss of the goods and for damage thereto

occurring between the time when he takes over the goods and the time of

delivery, as well as for any delay in delivery.

(2) The carrier shall, however, be relieved of liability if the loss,

damage or delay was caused by the wrongful act or neglect of the claimant, by

the instructions of the claimant given otherwise than as the result of a wrongful

act or neglect on the part of the carrier, by inherent vie of the goods or through

circumstances which the carrier could not avoid and the consequences of which

he was unable to prevent.

(3) The carrier shall not be relieved of liability by reason of the

defective condition of the vehicle used by him in order to perform the carriage,

or by reason of the wrongful act or neglect of the person from whom he may

have hired the vehicle or of the agents or servants of the latter.

(4) Subject to rule 997(2) to 997(5), the carrier shall be relieved of

liability when the loss or damage arises from the special risks inherent in one

more of the following circumstances:

use of open unsheeted vehicles, when their use has been

expressly agreed and specified in the consignment note;

the lack of, or defective condition of packing in the ease of

goods which, by their nature, are liable to wastage or to be

damaged when not packed or when not properly packed;

handling, loading, stowage or unloading of the goods by the

sender, the consignee or person acting on behalf of the sender or

the consignee;

the nature of certain kinds of goods which particularly exposes

them to total or partial loss or to damage, especially through

breakage, rust, decay, desiccation, leakage, normal wastage, or

the action of moth or vermin;

insufficiency or inadequacy of marks or numbers on the

packages; or

the carriage of livestock.

(5) Where under this rule the carrier is not under any liability in

respect of some of the factors causing the loss, damage or delay, he shall only

be liable the extent that those factors for which he is liable under this article

have contributed to the loss, damage or delay.

1. Exculpation of carrier regarding damage, loss etc.- (t) The

burden of proving that loss, damage or delay was due to one of the acts

specified in rule 996(2) shall rest upon the carrier.

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When the carrier establishes that in the circumstances of the case,

the Loss damage could be attributed to one or more of the special risks referred

to in Rule 996(4), it shall be presumed that it was so caused. The claimant shall,

however, be entitled to prove that the loss or damage was not. in fact,

attributable either wholly or partly to one of these risks.

This presumption shall not apply in the circumstances set out