Prime Minister Imran Khan has congratulated the Ministry for Maritime for finalising the Blue Economy policy for the shipping sector.
In a tweet on Saturday, the prime minister wrote that the federal government will ensure Pakistan fulfills its enormous maritime potential.
I congratulate @MaritimeGovPK for finalising a new & dynamic #BlueEconomy policy to revitalise our shipping sector, saving Pak valuable ForEX & creating more employment opportunities for our seafarers. We will ensure Pakistan fulfills its enormous maritime potential.
— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) August 15, 2020
The Ministry of Commerce (MoC) and the Ministry of Maritime Affairs announced the country’s new shipping policy a week ago, which brought incentives for the private shipping companies. and exempted the vessels registered in Pakistan from customs duty, income tax, and sales tax till 2030.
“Under the impact of the new shipping policy, we will soon see registration of 3-4 local shipping companies, which will also ensure job security for our seafarers,” Maritime Affairs Minister Ali Zaidi said. He added that Pakistan currently spends around $5 billion annually in terms of freight charges for all foreign trade, of which the share of PNSC is mere five percent.
New Pakistan resident shipowning companies would pay tax of $0.75 per gross register tonnage (GRT) for the first five years of the operations of each individual vessel, subject to the cut off period till 2030. After five years, Pakistan resident ship owning companies would pay $1 per GRT annually on the income from operation.
The minister said that vessels, under the Pakistani flag, would be provided priority berthing at all Pakistani ports, while no preference would be given to the Pakistan National Shipping Corporation (PNSC) in private sector cargo.
