Investors in the Zarqa Free Trade Zone have appealed to His Majesty King Abdullah to reverse a government decision taken on Aug. 30 subjecting them to paying customs duty in accordance with unified tariffs system, which they consider detrimental to their business.
The government took a decision on July 17 to impose a higher tariff on all used cars, but it excluded used cars that were already in the free trade zone or have had been shipped from their source before that date, said a letter of appeal to the King published in the local press on Monday.
But on Aug. 30, the government reversed its decision and amended the customs tariffs to subject all used cars, including those already in the free trade zone, to duty in accordance with the unified tariffs system.
Applying the unified customs on new and used cars alike will ruin used car dealerships because customers who might have purchased older cars would opt for brand-new vehicles instead.
Used cars dealers at the free zone complained that potential consumers were shocked by the increase in the customs duty following the Aug. 30 decision, because they found that they had to pay more for the used cars, which caused many of them to hesitate and call off the deals, according to the head of the investors society Hassan Baitouni who issued the appeal.
He said the unified tariff has brought a catastrophe to the dealers and their families.
The investors said they hope King Abdullah will serve them justice by directing the government to apply its decision taken on July 17.
Baitouni held a meeting for the investors society on Sunday evening during which he claimed that the state treasury could lose 80 percent of its revenues should the dealers in the free zone go bankrupt.
He said investors are willing to cooperate with the concerned authorities in imposing controls on the used cars imports and ensure sustainable investments. — ( Jordan Times )
