KATHMANDU: The Department of Transport Management (DoTM) has said its attention has been drawn toward ‘misleading correspondence’ by vehicle dealers regarding vehicle import approvals.
Writing a letter to the NADA Automobiles Association of Nepal on Sunday, the DoTM objected to the NADA’s recent approach of bypassing it and directly appealing to the Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport, and the Chinese Embassy in Kathmandu, alleging that the DoTM had refused to recommend vehicle imports.
DoTM said in the letter that NADA had made ‘baseless arguments’ in its appeal, claiming that vehicles imported freely in countries like Singapore and Sri Lanka should be allowed unrestricted entry into Nepal, and that the motor capacity of electric vehicles should match the highest capacity models available in China. “Vehicle import recommendations are made only after technical inspection of the required documents submitted by the dealers. If necessary, additional documents are requested when initial submissions fail to confirm key technical details,” the DoTM said in its letter. “However, instead of providing these additional documents, some dealers have falsely claimed that the department denied recommendations and raised the matter elsewhere.”
The DoTM has urged NADA to find a solution to the issue through necessary dialogue rather than focusing solely on the interests of a particular company in serious matters like potential evasion of revenue.
The DoTM also said it had tightened inspections due to the tendency of manipulating motor power ratings and underreporting motor power to evade higher taxes.
“Customs duty on electric vehicles is determined based on peak motor capacity. Since Nepal currently lacks technology to verify peak power, there is room for dealers to misrepresent figures on paper or alter motor specifications,” the DoTM said in its letter to NADA. “As part of our verification process, we often request supporting documents and, when possible, confirm details via email. However, we would like to clarify that no import process has been obstructed when proper documentation is submitted.”
The DoTM has urged NADA to find a solution to the issue through necessary dialogue rather than focusing solely on the interests of a particular company in serious matters like potential evasion of revenue.
