Customs Revises Import Values for 11 Medical Equipment Items

The Directorate General of Customs Valuation Karachi has re-determined customs values for 11 types of medical items imported from China, issuing fresh assessments for duties and taxes following a review order that rescinded earlier valuations. The new customs values apply to items such as alcohol swabs, heparin caps, nebulizers and oxygen masks, nasal oxygen cannulas, spinal needles, ECG electrodes, disposable surgical staplers, aneroid devices, three-way stopcocks, and three-ball spirometers. The revised values, however, do not apply to major international brands including Omron, Rossmax, Certeza, Beurer, Citizen, Accu Chek, Accusure and B Braun, even if they are manufactured in China. The earlier valuation ruling issued under Section 25A of the Customs Act 1969 had been challenged under Section 25D. The Director General set aside the ruling for selected items and directed the valuation directorate to conduct a fresh exercise while following the valuation hierarchy under Section 25 of the Act. Following this order, Customs issued notices to all stakeholders and held meetings to reassess values. Importers also submitted documents and requested revisions for two additional items, as more than 90 days had passed since the original ruling. Officials said valuation methods based on identical and similar goods could not be applied due to limited import data. Market surveys also produced mixed results because of price variations. The computed value method was examined but rejected due to the absence of manufacturing cost information from the exporting country. As a result, customs determined the final values under Section 25(9), read with Section 25(6) of the Customs Act and the relevant Customs Rules. The directorate stated that this approach allowed reasonable flexibility while staying aligned with statutory requirements.