The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) has released guidelines, outlined in Circular No. 21/2023-Customs, dated September 14, 2023. These guidelines pertain to the deployment of officers and the establishment of performance benchmarks in the context of granting exemptions from Cost Recovery Charges (CRC) at Air Freight Stations (AFS).
On October 28, 2014, the Ministry of Civil Aviation released Policy Guidelines concerning Air Freight Stations (AFS). The establishment of AFS aimed to facilitate and boost International Air Cargo operations by extending services to regions in the hinterland of the country.
Simultaneously, it was designed to alleviate congestion in Air Cargo terminals. An Air Freight Station (AFS) is an off-airport Common User Facility equipped with essential infrastructure and services for the temporary storage and handling of import and export cargo.
Whenever a new Customs facility, such as ports, airports, inland container depots, etc., is officially designated by the Board under the provisions of section 7 of the Customs Act, 1962, Customs personnel are assigned to make the facility operational.
The deployment of Customs staff is carried out by the Customs formation with jurisdiction over the area, and these assignments are established on a Cost Recovery basis. The Board has issued comprehensive guidelines regarding the appointment of Customs officers and staff under the Cost Recovery Charge (CRC) scheme through Circular No. 02/2021-Customs, dated January 19, 2021.
Up until now, there hasn’t been a functional AFS in place. However, it is anticipated that the AFSS will be prepared for operational use in the near future. Currently, there are no established standards or criteria outlined for the assignment of officers and the establishment of performance benchmarks when granting exemptions from the payment of Cost Recovery Charges (CRC).
Given this context, the CBIC established a committee comprising Chief Commissioners of Customs to provide recommendations regarding the staffing requirements for Customs personnel at AFS. This committee of Chief Commissioners was additionally responsible for identifying the specific performance criteria that would determine whether an AFS qualifies for an exemption from paying cost recovery charges for the Customs staff assigned to it.
According to the report, the CBIC has secured approval from the Competent Authority for both the staffing guidelines governing the allocation of positions on a cost recovery basis at AFS and the performance criteria that would determine whether an AFS qualifies for exemption from cost recovery charge payments. The approved recommendations are detailed as follows:
(i) Staffing norms for an AFS:
| Category of goods handled by AFS | Deputy/Asst Commissioner/ | Appraiser/ Superintendent | Inspector/ Examiner | STA/TA | Hawaldar | Total |
| Both Imported and export goods | 1 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 11 |
| Only Export goods | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 8 |
(ii) Benchmark performance criteria for grant of waiver from Cost Recovery Charges for an AFS:
| Category of goods handled by AFS | Criterion-I: Minimum Annual Volume of Import & Export Cargo per year | Criterion-II: Minimum number of documents -Bills of Entry/Shipping Bills per year |
| Both imported and export goods | 4000 MTs | 14,000 |
| Only Export goods | 2000 MTs | 7,000 |
(iii) An AFS will become eligible for waiver of cost recovery charges if it achieves both the above mentioned criteria in the preceding two financial years or any one of the criteria in the preceding four financial years.
(iv) The other aspects prescribed for Customs facilities in Board’s Circular 02/2021-Customs dated January 19, 2021 such as creation of cost recovery posts payment of cost recovery charges, procedure for granting waiver, withdrawal of waiver granted, de-notification & cost recovery charges etc. will be made applicable to AFS also.
These instructions may be brought to the notice of the stakeholders by issuing Trade/Public Notices. Suitable internal orders/instructions may also be issued for the guidance of the officers.
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