The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has approved the defreezing of the tariff values of all edible oils, including crude, refined bleached deodorised (RBD) and other varieties of palm oil, crude and other varieties of palmolein and crude soyabean oil, and the notification of the same on the basis of their prevailing international prices.
An alignment of the notified tariff values with international prices will have a positive impact on the duty collected from import of edible oils and will provide an even field to the domestic refining industry.
Background
Tariff value is fixed under Section 14 (2) of the Customs Act, 1962, inter alia, on the above edible oils and notified on a fortnightly basis. Since July 31, 2006, tariff values of edible oils have remained unchanged, as a fiscal measure to contain inflation.
The freeze has led to significant variations between the notified tariff values and the computed landed prices based on international prices of the edible oils, and is adversely affecting the revenue collection and the domestic refining industry. Hence, it was proposed to align the tariff values with the international prices of edible oils.
