The International Trade Administration Commission of South Africa (ITAC) has extended an invitation for comment on the proposed application for the creation of a temporary rebate provision (Rebate Item) of the full customs duty for the importation of collision avoidance equipment for vehicles incorporating a visual detection sensor, classifiable in tariff subheading 8512.20. Comment is due by 04 September 2023.
The application was lodged by DriveRisk (Pty) Ltd who reasoned that:
- According to the Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC), South Africa has one of the worst road accident records in the world and road accidents cost our country over R300 billion a year in collision claims and downtime. Driver cameras are specifically designed to identify common human factors that lead to accidents;
- There are currently no local manufacturers of the subject product or similar substitute products in the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) region. This means DriveRisk has no option but to import at a 15% ad valorem ‘General’ customs duty;
- Given that there is no local producer, the customs duty has an unnecessary cost-raising effect and DriveRisk is not able to offer these products at a competitive price; and
Should the application be approved, the customs duty relief will assist more fleet operators to adopt the technology, leading to safer drivers on our roads, and assist the applicant in its growth plans, to preserve existing jobs and enable the creation of additional jobs.