PM orders third-party audit of customs bonded warehouses

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has ordered relevant authorities to carry out a comprehensive audit of customs bonded warehouses by a third party, covering the previous three years, according to Mettis Link News. He cautioned that officials who were careless or implicated in wrongdoing will face quick legal proceedings. The directive came at a review meeting on the Federal Board of Revenue, where he said no irregularity can be tolerated in these warehouses.

Briefing participants were told that petroleum cargo held in customs warehouses is linked to the Web-Based One Customs (WeBOC) system. Bonded trade represents 16.5% of total national imports, and a countrywide physical stock verification will follow the prime minister's instructions. Authorities told the meeting that licensing, security, valuation testing and IT reviews are already under way to eliminate irregularities.

According to the report, several federal ministers, the State Bank of Pakistan governor and senior officials attended the session. The briefing also covered inland revenue enforcement alongside customs bonded warehouses.