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The Directorate General of Customs Valuation, Karachi, has issued new customs values for imported solar panels from all origins, ranging between US$0.08 and US$0.09 per Watt, as reported by local media here.
The revised customs values were notified through Valuation Ruling No. 2012/2025, issued on Monday, following multiple representations by stakeholders who highlighted a sharp decline in international market prices.
In response, the Directorate initiated a re-evaluation exercise to align customs values with current global rates.
The Pakistan Solar Association (PSA) formally submitted a representation on January 21, 2025, seeking a revision of the earlier Valuation Ruling No. 1894/2024, issued on July 4, 2024.
PSA pointed to a significant drop in global solar panel prices and urged customs authorities to revise outdated rates.
An initial stakeholder meeting was held on February 19, 2025. During the meeting, importers and PSA members emphasized that the previous customs values were too high and causing delays in goods clearance.
Banks were rejecting declared transaction values as they were lower than existing customs rates, creating compliance issues.
Participants unanimously supported the continuation of the tier-based valuation system used in the previous ruling and requested market verification through local distributors and active solar exhibitions in Pakistan. However, several key importers missed the meeting due to their participation in an international solar expo in China, which extended for nearly two months. The valuation process faced further delays due to the transfer of relevant customs officials.
In a follow-up meeting most stakeholders reiterated the consistent decline in market prices and submitted supporting documents, including commercial invoices, Goods Declarations (GDs) and other relevant evidence. The Directorate also reviewed clearance data from the last 90 days to ensure a transparent and fair reassessment.
The Directorate considered valuation methods outlined in section 25 of the Customs Act, 1969. The transaction value method under Sub-section (1) was found inapplicable due to a lack of sufficient supporting data as required in Sub-section (2).
The method for identical goods under Section 25(5) was partially applicable but not fully reliable due to the absence of complete proof regarding quantity and quality.
Consequently, the valuation was finalized using the similar goods method under the Section 25(6) based on clearance data of comparable products. This approach formed the basis for determining the final customs values under Section 25A of the Customs Act, 1969.
