The American Chamber of Commerce organized a Business Forum with the General Custom Director Mr. Flamur Gjymishka.

The general director of Albania’s customs service, Flamur Gjymishka, and a team of the Customs Directorate took part in the latest AmCham Business Forum. The meeting dealt with a series of issues, ranging from the new fiscal package to excise taxes – and further focused on reference prices, which make up one of the most debated issues by AmCham members.

A large portion of AmCham members raised the issue of excise duties as a problem expected to be addressed by a new law. They say excise stamps continue to be prepaid at the time the product comes out of production, a practice that creates difficulties in liquidity for businesses, since they get the money back only when they sell the product.

Reference prices have made comeback at AmCham’s meeting with the head of customs and his staff. A substantial part of what member businesses have brought to the meeting dealt with their experience of clearing customs with prices not based on actual invoices but on the customs’ set reference prices.

AmCham Vice President Genc Boga asked the customs representatives to better define the criteria for alternate assessment, since that remains a major concern for businesses.

Customs officials say the elimination of import taxes for used vehicles has reduced by up to 70 percent the cost of clearing a vehicle through customs. Customs General Director Flamur Gjymishka said the move comes a result of a new law

Customs officials told AmCham members that after the new law went into effect, more than 100 vehicles started to enter the market each day. If these rates continue, in a year it will mean more than 30,000 vehicles will have cleared customs. That’s nearly double of what had happened in the past, they noted.