Customs Valuation in Bangladesh 2026: Transaction Value, Valuation Rules and Disputes

Customs valuation Bangladesh: the 2026 framework in brief

Customs valuation Bangladesh law applies to imports decides the tax bill on almost every commercial consignment, because customs duty, regulatory duty, supplementary duty, VAT, advance tax and advance income tax are all calculated from one number: the assessable value. That number is fixed under section 27 of the Customs Act 2023 and the Customs Valuation (Determination of Value of Imported Goods) Rules 2000, which carry the WTO Valuation Agreement into Bangladeshi law. When Customs rejects an invoice and substitutes a higher figure, every layer of tax rises with it.

This guide goes beneath the headline rates covered in our companion guides. It explains which valuation rules are in force in 2026, how transaction value works rule by rule, how related-party prices are tested, what Customs must do before rejecting a declared value, the fallback methods, minimum values, the legacy of pre-shipment inspection, and the routes for challenge. It also covers the 2026 reforms requiring reasons and international price data.

Summary: Imported goods in Bangladesh are valued first on transaction value: the price actually paid or payable, adjusted under rule 10 of the 2000 Valuation Rules for items such as royalties, assists, commissions, freight, insurance and a 1% landing charge. Customs can depart from that price only on stated grounds and must then work down a fixed hierarchy of identical goods, similar goods, deductive value, computed value and a fallback method, subject to minimum values fixed by SRO. Disputes go to the Commissioner of Customs (Appeal), the Appellate Tribunal, ADR or, in limited cases, a writ petition.

Key point: The Customs Act 2023 repealed the 1969 Act, but section 269(2)(e) keeps rules made under it in force until they are replaced. No new valuation rules appear in the National Board of Revenue's 2026 SRO listings, so the Customs Valuation Rules 2000, as amended in 2002, remain the operative code. The Finance Act 2026 and a June 2026 NBR order add a duty to give reasons and to test declared prices against recognised international benchmarks.

At a glance

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Table of Contents

Where customs valuation Bangladesh rules come from in 2026

The starting point is section 27(1) of the Customs Act 2023, substituted by the Finance Ordinance 2025. Where duty is levied by reference to value, the value is the actual price, meaning the price actually paid or payable or its nearest ascertainable equivalent, at which such or like goods are ordinarily sold for delivery at the time and place of importation, in international trade under fully competitive conditions, where buyer and seller have no interest in each other's business and price is the sole consideration.[1] Section 27(2) then requires imported goods to be valued according to rules made for that purpose.

Those rules are still the Customs Valuation (Determination of Value of Imported Goods) Rules 2000, issued by the Board as SRO 57-Law/2000/1821/Cus on 23 February 2000 under section 25 of the Customs Act 1969, and amended by SRO 139-Law/2002/1958/Cus of 6 June 2002.[2] [3] Bangladesh Customs describes them as the vehicle through which the WTO valuation methods were incorporated into national law.[3]

Why rules made under a repealed Act still apply

Section 269(1) of the 2023 Act repealed the Customs Act 1969. Section 269(2)(e), however, provides that rules, orders and notifications issued under the old Act continue in force, so far as consistent with the new Act, until repealed or amended. Section 270 then reads every reference to the 1969 Act, and to its provisions, as a reference to the corresponding provision of the 2023 Act.[1] A reference in the Rules to old section 25 is therefore read as section 27, and the old appeal provisions as the new Chapter XXVI.

The Government's power to make replacement rules sits in section 263, and item 18 of the Second Schedule expressly covers valuation, the information an importer must supply and production of books and documents.[1] The NBR's customs SRO register for 2026 lists new rules on risk management, private ports, container depots and temporary import, plus minimum-value SROs, but no replacement valuation rules.[9] Before any filing, check that register again: a new code would change rule numbers and possibly substance.

The interpretative notes travel with the Rules

Rule 15 provides that the Interpretative Notes in Annex I to the WTO Agreement on Implementation of Article VII of GATT 1994 apply, with necessary modifications, to the interpretation of the Rules.[2] Where the Bangladeshi text is silent, for example on when a royalty is a condition of sale, the WTO notes are a legitimate tool of argument before Customs and the Appellate Tribunal.

The WTO Valuation Agreement and its six methods

The WTO Agreement requires customs value to be based, except in specified circumstances, on the actual price of the goods, generally shown on the invoice, plus the adjustments in Article 8. That transaction value is the first and principal method. Where there is no transaction value, or it is unacceptable because the price has been distorted, five further methods apply in strict order: transaction value of identical goods, transaction value of similar goods, deductive value, computed value and a fall-back method.[4]

Three features shape every customs valuation Bangladesh dispute. First, the order of methods is mandatory, though deductive and computed value may be reversed at the importer's request. Second, Article 17 lets customs satisfy itself as to the truth or accuracy of any declaration, but a WTO Decision on cases where customs has reasons to doubt the declared value requires it to ask for explanation, communicate its reasoning and allow time to respond before rejecting the price. Third, the fall-back method may not use arbitrary or fictitious values, the higher of two alternatives, or minimum values, unless a developing country has reserved the right to use them.[4]

Bangladesh's Rules track this structure closely. Where they depart from it, most visibly through minimum values and a wider definition of related persons, the departure is written into the statute or the Rules.

The transaction value method under rule 4

Rule 3 makes transaction value the primary basis of valuation and requires the officer to move through rules 5 to 9 in sequence only if it cannot be used.[2] Rule 4(1) defines transaction value as the price actually paid or payable for goods sold for export to Bangladesh, adjusted under rule 10, provided four conditions are met.

• No restrictions on use: the buyer must be free to dispose of or use the goods, except for restrictions imposed by law or a public authority in Bangladesh, limits on the geographical area of resale, or restrictions that do not substantially affect value.
• No unquantifiable conditions: the sale or price must not be subject to a condition or consideration whose value cannot be determined.
• No undisclosed proceeds: no part of the proceeds of resale, disposal or use may accrue to the seller unless it can be added under rule 10.
• No relationship, or an acceptable one: the buyer and seller must not be related, or, if related, the price must pass the tests in rule 4(2).

The "price actually paid or payable" is the total payment made or to be made by the buyer to or for the benefit of the seller. It includes payments to third parties that discharge the seller's obligations.[2] [4] Bank remittances, LC amendments, credit notes, debit notes and side agreements all form part of that picture, which is why Customs routinely compares the bill of entry against the LC and remittance records held in banking systems.

Additions required by rule 10(1)

Rule 10(1) lists the items to be added to the price, to the extent borne by the buyer and not already included:[2]

• commissions and brokerage, except buying commissions;
• the cost of containers treated as one with the goods, and the cost of packing, both labour and materials;
• assists supplied free or at reduced cost: materials, components and parts incorporated in the goods; tools, dies and moulds; materials consumed in production; and engineering, development, artwork, design work, plans and sketches undertaken outside Bangladesh and necessary for production;
• royalties and licence fees the buyer must pay, directly or indirectly, as a condition of sale;
• any part of the proceeds of resale, disposal or use that accrues to the seller; and
• any other payment made as a condition of sale by the buyer to the seller, or to a third party to satisfy the seller's obligation.

Royalties and assists cause the most trouble. A brand licence paid to a foreign parent, or moulds sent free to an overseas manufacturer, can be dutiable though absent from the invoice. The test is whether the payment is a condition of sale, which turns on the contracts, not the label.

Freight, insurance and the 1% landing charge

Rule 10(2) puts Bangladesh on a CIF basis. Value includes the cost of transport to the place of importation, loading, unloading and handling charges associated with delivery at that place, and insurance. The proviso adds a deemed landing charge of 1% of the FOB value to transport and insurance, and where the insurance cost cannot be ascertained, 1% of FOB is taken as the insurance cost. For goods arriving by air, freight is applied at rates fixed by the Board.[2]

Rule 10(3) requires every addition to rest on objective and quantifiable data, and rule 10(4) forbids any other addition.[2] An unexplained "uplift", or post-importation costs such as inland transport, has no legal basis.

Section 30 fixes value, rate of duty and exchange rate, normally at the registration date of the goods declaration.[1] Our import duty guide explains the exchange rate and how assessable value flows through each tax layer.

Related parties and transfer prices

Group imports are where customs valuation and transfer pricing meet. Rule 2 deems persons related only if they are officers or directors of each other's businesses; legally recognised partners; employer and employee; owners of 5% or more of each other's business, directly or indirectly; one controls the other; both are controlled by a third person; together they control a third person; one is the sole agent, sole distributor or sole concessionaire of the other; or they are members of the same family.[2]

The sole agent, distributor and concessionaire limb goes further than the WTO text, which treats those persons as related only if they also meet one of the general tests.[4] An exclusive distributor should therefore expect a rule 4(2) review and declare the relationship accurately.

How a related-party price is accepted

A relationship does not by itself defeat transaction value. Under rule 4(2), the price is accepted where examination of the circumstances of sale shows that the relationship did not influence it. If an officer not below Assistant Commissioner, on the information available, considers that it did, the officer must give the importer the reasons in writing and a reasonable opportunity to respond.[2]

Alternatively, the importer can demonstrate that the declared value closely approximates a test value, ascertained at or about the same time: the transaction value of identical or similar goods sold to unrelated buyers in Bangladesh, or the deductive or computed value of identical or similar goods. Due account is taken of differences in commercial level, quantity, rule 10 adjustments and costs the seller saves in related sales.[2]

The strongest evidence is a group pricing policy supported by the benchmarking prepared for income tax transfer pricing. That report is not conclusive for customs, and a year-end adjustment that raises the price after importation is a customs valuation Bangladesh issue to be disclosed, not discovered at audit.

When Customs doubts the declared value

Customs may test any declaration. Rule 12 preserves the appraising officer's right to question the truth or accuracy of any statement, document or declaration.[2] What the Rules do not allow is rejection by assertion. A low price is a reason to ask questions, not, without more, a legal ground for substituting a database figure.

What the importer must file

Rule 11 requires the importer or its representative to submit a value declaration in the form annexed to the Rules, together with any invoice from the manufacturer where goods are bought from a third party, and any other statement or document the officer considers necessary.[2]

The importer's rights

Rule 11A, inserted in 2002, gives the importer the right, on written request, to a written explanation from an officer not below Assistant Commissioner of how the value of the goods was determined. Rule 9(3) gives a similar right where the fall-back method is used, and rule 13 requires the officer, where value is determined by a method other than the declared value, to inform the importer in writing on the date of that determination.[2]

These rights should be used. In Doyel Enterprise v National Board of Revenue, decided on 28 July 2013, the High Court Division dismissed an importer's customs appeal in part because it had never asked for the explanation of how its goods were assessed and had not placed the assessment sheet before the court.[11] A written request made at the assessment stage builds the record on which every later appeal depends.

Reasons are now mandatory

The Finance Act 2026 hardened this position. It requires reasons to be stated where transaction value is rejected, and provides for international valuation reports from reputable notified sources to be considered in valuation.[5] Combined with rules 4(2), 11A and 13, an unreasoned rejection of the invoice price is now vulnerable at every level of appeal.

The fallback methods: rules 5 to 9

Once transaction value is properly rejected, the officer must apply the next usable method, in order. Jumping to a database figure without explaining why identical and similar goods fail is the commonest error in customs valuation Bangladesh assessments, and a recurring ground of appeal.[11] [12]

Identical and similar goods

Rule 5 values the goods at the transaction value of identical goods imported into Bangladesh at the same or about the same time, using sales at the same commercial level and in substantially the same quantity, with adjustments where necessary. Identical goods are the same in all respects, including physical characteristics, quality and reputation, and produced in the same country. Rule 6 applies the same approach to similar goods, which are not identical but have like characteristics and component materials, perform the same functions and are commercially interchangeable.[2]

Rule 5(4), applied to similar goods by rule 6(2), is the importer's most useful provision: where more than one transaction value of identical goods is found, the lowest must be used.[2] In Maruf Alam v Customs, Excise and VAT Appellate Tribunal, decided on 19 June 2013, the importer relied on rule 5(4), but the High Court Division found that the comparator chosen matched the goods and their origin, and dismissed the appeal.[12] The rule protects the importer only if the lower comparators are put in evidence.

Timing matters too. The Rules define "at or about the same time" by reference to a ninety-day window, and in Doyel Enterprise the court held that bills of entry filed more than ninety days before the importer's own fell outside it.[2] [11] Comparators must be contemporaneous to count.

Deductive and computed value

Rule 7 works back from the price at which the imported, identical or similar goods are sold in the greatest aggregate quantity to unrelated buyers in Bangladesh, deducting commissions, profit and general expenses, the rule 10(2) costs and the duties and taxes payable in Bangladesh. Rule 8 builds value up from the cost of materials and fabrication, profit and general expenses and the rule 10(2) costs. Under rule 3, the importer may ask for rules 7 and 8 to be applied in reverse order, subject to the Commissioner's approval.[2]

The fall-back method and its limits

Rule 9 allows value to be determined by reasonable means consistent with the Rules, on the basis of information available in Bangladesh. The explanation to rule 9 expressly includes internationally reputed independent publications, printed price lists of reputed manufacturers and reliable information published on the internet.[2]

Rule 9(2) lists bases that may never be used: the selling price in Bangladesh of goods produced in Bangladesh; a system that takes the higher of two alternative values; the price on the domestic market of the exporting country; a production cost other than a computed value under rule 8; the price of goods exported to a country other than Bangladesh; and arbitrary or fictitious values.[2] An assessment that relies on a "reference value" without identifying its source and method is open to challenge on that ground alone.

Minimum values, tariff values and export values

Section 27(5) of the Customs Act 2023 preserves the Government's power to fix, by gazette notification, tariff values or minimum values for goods chargeable ad valorem. Where the declared value is higher than the fixed value, duty is charged on the declared value.[1] In effect, the importer pays on the higher of the two, whatever the real price.

Minimum values sit uneasily with the WTO model, which excludes them from the fall-back method unless a developing country has taken the relevant reservation.[4] Bangladesh has used them extensively. In 2020 The Daily Star reported that minimum values covered more than 700 imported goods, including cars, cosmetics, chocolate, coffee and vehicle parts, and that an NBR instruction of 30 July 2018 to apply the 2000 Rules uniformly from 1 September had not taken effect.[8]

The 2026 minimum-value SROs

The current list is set by SRO. The NBR register shows a minimum-value SRO reissued in 2026 as SRO No. 189-Ain/2026/44/Customs and a further amending SRO, No. 242-Ain/2026/72/Customs, among the 2026 customs notifications.[9] The Finance Act 2026 deleted the minimum value for synthetic and semi-synthetic lubricating oil under heading 34.03.[5] The FY2026-27 changes to minimum values by HS heading are summarised in our customs law guide.

Exports follow a parallel rule: section 27(3) values them at the ordinary selling price at the time of exportation, including transport to the exit station, and lets the Government fix a higher export value.[1]

Customs valuation Bangladesh reforms in 2025 and 2026

For customs valuation Bangladesh practice, the past eighteen months brought the biggest shift since 2000: fewer arbitrary uplifts, more reliance on market prices, and written reasons for any departure from the invoice.

Finance Ordinance 2025 and the 2023 Act

The Finance Ordinance 2025 substituted section 27(1) and (2) and set interest on unpaid duty at a simple 1% per month under section 32(3), raising the cost of losing a dispute after release against a guarantee.[1]

Finance Act 2026

The Finance Act 2026 introduced four valuation changes: international valuation reports from reputable notified sources are to be considered; reasons must be stated when transaction value is rejected; ISO-certified private laboratories may carry out chemical examination of imports; and, for brand-new electric vehicles, the manufacturer's invoice value is to be accepted as transaction value.[5]

The June 2026 NBR order on international benchmarks

On 16 June 2026 The Business Standard reported an NBR decision that Customs will accept the declared transaction value when the import documents match recognised international pricing sources, naming S&P Global Platts, ICIS, the London Metal Exchange, Shanghai Metals Market, Bloomberg and the International Sugar Organization. An NBR official said these sources cover nearly 95% of imported goods, and the NBR Chairman, Abdur Rahman Khan, said the change would reduce both under-invoicing and over-invoicing and cut litigation.[6]

The report cited a National Task Force for Tax Reforms finding that import values in FY24 and FY25 were raised by up to 15% over declared values. The order cuts both ways: a price above the reference must be declared.[6]

The Platts subscription

On 21 September 2026 The Daily Star reported that the NBR was buying a three-year S&P Global Platts subscription, at about Tk 8 crore approved by the Ministry of Finance, with 20 to 30 user IDs for customs houses. It followed an 11 August 2026 meeting at Chattogram where Finance and Planning Minister Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury heard complaints of imports valued well above invoice.[7]

For commodities, the best evidence of value is now a published benchmark for the shipment date; an invoice below it needs a documented reason, such as a long-term contract price.

Pre-shipment inspection: what is left of the CRF regime

For two decades, valuation disputes in Bangladesh were shaped by pre-shipment inspection. The system was introduced in 1992 and made mandatory in 2000 at the suggestion of multilateral donors.[10] Approved inspection agencies examined goods at the port of loading and issued a clean report of findings, known as a CRF, certifying price, quality, quantity and HS code. Section 25A of the 1969 Act and the Pre-Shipment Inspection Rules 2002 gave the CRF a central role in assessment, with a Review Committee chaired by the Commissioner of Customs (Appeal) to resolve disputes.[12] [13]

How the courts treated CRF values

The Appellate Division held that a CRF validly issued under section 25A before 13 May 1997 overrode tariff values. In Commissioner of Customs v Abul Khair Steel Mills, decided on 17 January 2023, it followed that line and held that value and rate of duty are fixed at the in-bond bill of entry, not the later ex-bond bill.[13]

The CRF never immunised a low price: in Maruf Alam Customs rebutted a CRF value by reference to identical goods.[12] In Md Nazrul Islam v National Board of Revenue, decided on 19 March 2024, it held that a challenge to a CRF before final assessment was premature, and directed final assessment within ninety days under the PSI Rules, the Valuation Rules and the Act.[14]

Pre-shipment inspection after 2023

The Customs Act 2023 contains no equivalent of section 25A and no provision giving an inspection certificate binding effect on assessment.[1] Legacy CRF cases are still being decided under the saving provisions, but for current imports an inspection report is evidence, not a basis of value. An inspection commissioned by the buyer or required under the LC can still support the declared quantity, quality and price; see our guides to import-export licensing and LC disputes.

How valuation disputes unfold at the port

A dispute usually begins with a query on the bill of entry in ASYCUDA World and a proposed higher value. The importer must then choose between accepting it and paying storage while it contests the figure.

Provisional assessment against a guarantee

Section 93 allows an officer not below Assistant Commissioner to assess duty provisionally and release the goods where further enquiry or documents are needed, against a guarantee for the difference. Final assessment must follow within 120 working days of the provisional assessment or, where a case is pending before a court, tribunal or appellate authority, within 120 working days of receiving the final order. [1] Rule 14 of the Valuation Rules provides the same release mechanism where valuation is delayed.[2]

Post-clearance demands and penalties

Valuation can be reopened after release. Section 91 permits reassessment altering customs value, subject to the limitation in section 204. Section 204(2) generally bars a demand more than three years after the relevant date, usually the release of the goods. Section 33, however, allows a demand at any time where duty was short-levied because of a false statement or document, and the penalty table in section 171 sets a penalty of not less than the duty evaded and up to twice that amount, with confiscation, for such statements.[1]

Section 171(2) offers a route out. No penalty is imposed for an incorrect declaration of customs value, among other particulars, if the person voluntarily discloses the error before the declaration is selected for examination, documents are called for, or the declaration is chosen for audit or investigation.[1] An importer that discovers an undisclosed royalty or a retrospective price increase should consider disclosure before Customs finds it.

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Who decides a customs valuation dispute

Knowing which office holds the file determines what can be asked for and when.[1]

Appeals, ADR and writs in customs valuation Bangladesh cases

The appeal provisions of the Customs Act 2023 are set out in full in our customs law guide. The points below are the ones that matter most in valuation cases.

Commissioner of Customs (Appeal)

An order by an officer below Commissioner, including an assessment at a rejected value, is appealable to the Commissioner of Customs (Appeal) under section 220 within three months of notification, extendable by two months for sufficient cause. The Commissioner (Appeal) may admit any statement, document or information that may assist, and must give reasons and decide within two years, extendable by six months, failing which the appeal is deemed allowed.[1]

The Appellate Tribunal and its special bench

Orders of a Commissioner acting as adjudicating authority go to the Customs, Excise and VAT Appellate Tribunal within 90 days, extendable by 60 days. Section 228(3) requires every appeal involving the value of goods for assessment to be heard by a special bench of at least two members, and a single member cannot decide a value question. The Tribunal can stay the impugned order under section 227(5).[1]

One drafting point needs attention. As substituted by the Finance Ordinance 2025, section 226(1)(b) describes the appealable Commissioner (Appeal) orders as orders under sections 220 and 221 "as it stood immediately before the prescribed date".[1] Confirm the current route before relying on a second appeal from a Commissioner (Appeal) decision.

Pre-deposit and the High Court Division

Where the goods have left customs control, section 223 generally requires a deposit of 10% of the duty demanded, which the appellate authority may waive for undue hardship; interest continues to run unless the demand is set aside.[1] Either side may appeal a Tribunal order to the High Court Division within 90 days under section 229. That appeal is decided on the record: in Doyel Enterprise the paper book omitted the assessment sheet, and the court declined to find the assessment illegal.[11]

Customs ADR for valuation

Chapter XXV lets importers settle valuation disputes, and connected fines, before a Board-appointed facilitator at any forum, provided ADR starts before adjudication or appeal is complete. Classification, misdeclaration of description, quantity or HS code, forgery, money laundering and fraud are excluded.[1] A pure valuation dispute is therefore well suited to ADR; one framed as misdeclaration is not.

Writ petitions

Section 252 bars civil suits against assessment decisions, but the High Court Division's writ jurisdiction under article 102 of the Constitution remains for decisions made without lawful authority.[1] The court will not pre-empt an assessment that has not been made: in Md Nazrul Islam it quoted the earlier holding in Abul Khair Condensed Milk and Beverage Ltd v Commissioner of Customs that objections to a certificate before assessment are premature.[14]

Writs work best for refusal to release goods against a guarantee, assessments that ignore the hierarchy, or a failure to give reasons. See our guide to writ petitions in Bangladesh; the April 2026 carpet writs are analysed in our import duty guide.

The table below compares the routes. On a phone, scroll it sideways.

Building a valuation defence file

Most customs valuation Bangladesh disputes are won or lost on documents assembled before the goods arrive. A defensible file for each product line contains:

• Contract chain: purchase order, sales contract, proforma and final invoice, and any manufacturer's invoice where the seller is a trader, as rule 11 contemplates.
• Payment trail: LC or contract registration, amendments, SWIFT messages, debit and credit notes, and confirmation that no side payment exists.
• Rule 10 schedule: a reconciliation of commissions, packing, assists, royalties and freight, showing what is included in the price and what has been added.
• Market evidence: Platts, LME, ICIS or other published benchmarks for the shipment date, and the importer's own recent clearances of identical goods.
• Relationship analysis: for group or exclusive-distribution imports, the rule 4(2) case and the group pricing policy.
• Explanation request: a template rule 11A letter ready to send the moment a higher value is proposed.

Our customs and trade compliance practice builds these files for importers and handles valuation disputes from the first query to the High Court Division. Where a dispute becomes a constitutional challenge, our constitutional and writ litigation team takes it forward.

Outlook for customs valuation Bangladesh importers

Three developments will shape the next year. First, the Platts subscription and the June 2026 order should reduce database uplifts, but prices well below benchmark will draw closer scrutiny.[6] [7] Second, the duty to give reasons under the Finance Act 2026 will make unreasoned assessments easier to overturn on appeal.[5] Third, replacement rules under section 263 could codify the benchmark practice.[1]

Treat the declared value as a legal position to be evidenced, not a figure copied from the invoice. If Customs has proposed a higher value on a pending consignment, or a post-clearance demand has arrived, contact TRW before the appeal window starts to run.

Frequently asked questions

Which valuation rules apply to imports in Bangladesh in 2026?

The Customs Valuation (Determination of Value of Imported Goods) Rules 2000, issued as SRO 57 of 2000 and amended in 2002. They were made under the 1969 Act but continue in force under section 269(2)(e) of the Customs Act 2023, read with section 27.[1] [2]

What is transaction value in customs valuation Bangladesh law?

The price actually paid or payable for goods sold for export to Bangladesh, adjusted under rule 10, where the buyer can freely use the goods, the price is not subject to unquantifiable conditions, no undeclared proceeds go to the seller, and the parties are unrelated or their relationship did not influence the price.[2]

What is added to the invoice price for customs purposes?

Selling commissions and brokerage, containers and packing, assists, royalties and licence fees paid as a condition of sale, proceeds accruing to the seller, freight, insurance and a landing charge of 1% of FOB value. Where insurance cannot be ascertained, 1% of FOB is used.[2]

Can Customs reject my invoice because the price is low?

Customs may question any declaration, but it must have grounds, give reasons in writing and then apply the fallback methods in order. The Finance Act 2026 requires reasons whenever transaction value is rejected.[2] [5]

Are imports from a parent company valued differently?

The price is accepted if the circumstances of sale show the relationship did not influence it, or if it closely approximates a test value. An officer who thinks otherwise must give written reasons and an opportunity to respond. Sole agents and distributors also count as related under the Rules.[2]

What are minimum values?

Values fixed by gazette notification under section 27(5) for specified goods. Duty is charged on the minimum value unless the declared value is higher. The current list is set by 2026 SROs and changes with each budget.[1] [9]

Does a pre-shipment inspection certificate bind Customs?

Not for current imports. The CRF regime under section 25A of the 1969 Act has no equivalent in the Customs Act 2023, so an inspection report is supporting evidence only. Legacy CRF cases continue under the saving provisions.[1] [13]

Can I clear goods while disputing the value?

Yes. Section 93 allows provisional assessment and release against a guarantee for the difference, with final assessment due within 120 working days or within 120 working days of a final order where a case is pending.[1]

How long do I have to appeal a valuation decision?

Three months to the Commissioner of Customs (Appeal), extendable by two months; 90 days to the Appellate Tribunal, extendable by 60 days; and 90 days from a Tribunal order to the High Court Division.[1]

Can a valuation dispute be settled through ADR?

Yes. Customs ADR covers valuation disputes and connected fines at any stage before adjudication or appeal is complete. It does not cover classification disputes, misdeclaration of description, quantity or HS code, fraud or money laundering.[1]