Bring home a personal car from abroad via No-Dollar Import

I ONCE heard from a well-known Baguio filmmaker how hard it was to import a used car that was donated or given as a gift from abroad, and I also learned of stories about of the rigors and hardships of importing personal commodities, especially if it involves motor vehicles.

Last week, I came to learn about a particular bureau that facilitates the importation of second-hand motor vehicles of returning residents or migrants when personnel from the Bureau of Import Services requested me to interview one applicant for a program under the No-Dollar policy in their behalf.

The Bureau of Import Services (BIS) is a staff agency of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) mandated to administer import rules and regulations, disseminate timely and accurate information on imports to domestic industries and to undertake preliminary investigation of anti-dumping protests referred by other agencies and likewise to adopt sound policies programs and guidelines relative to importation.

Aside from promoting an environment conducive industrial growth and development that generates jobs in globally competitive industries especially in the country side, the BIS is also tasked to provide effective management of imports and implement beneficial programs that provide relief to industries against unfair import trade practices.

One interesting function that I came to learn from the BIS is the facilitation of the No-dollar importation of motor vehicles covered under the No Dollar Importation (NDI) Program. The NDI is a special privilege given by the government to returning residents and other qualified individuals to bring motor vehicles into the country for personal use under certain conditions.

According to the program, an applicant beneficiary must have resided abroad for at least one year accumulated within 3 year period of his/her stay up to the date of filing. Applicants to said program must be immigrants holding 13g or 13a Visa, Dual Citizen; SRR Visa Holder under the Philippine Retirement Act and Visa Holder under the Balik-Scientist Program.

Applicants under the NDI program are entitled to the importation of a left-hand-drive motor vehicle not to exceed 3,000 Kilograms. The item to be imported must be registered under the name of the qualified importer for at least six months prior to the submission of the application to the Bureau of Import Services (BIS).

The NDI program also requires a Certificate of Emission Compliance (CEC) from country of origin duly authenticated by the Philippine Embassy abroad (under CAA RA 8749). For Philippine passport holders, applicants are required to completely fill up a notarized BIS Application Form and notarized Affidavit of Undertaking. Other basic requirements include 1 copy of 2X2 picture with signature’ original or authenticated copy of complete pages of old and new passport, original or authenticated copy of Car Title or Registration with English translation if necessary and processing fee of One Thousand Five Hundred Pesos (P1,500.00) for cars and Nine Hundred Pesos (P 900.00) for motorcycle.

Executive Order 156 also provides for a comprehensive industrial policy and directions for the motor vehicle development program and its implementing guidelines.

The importation into the country, inclusive of the Freeport, of all types of used motor vehicles is prohibited except for the following; A vehicle that is owned and for the personal use of a returning resident or immigrant and covered by an authority to import issued under the No-Dollar Importation Program but, such vehicles cannot be resold for at least three years; Special purpose vehicles such as fire trucks, ambulances, funeral hearses/coaches, crane lorries, tractor heads or truck tractors, boom trucks, tanker trucks, tank lorries with high pressure spray gun, reefers or refrigerated trucks, mobile drilling derricks, transit/concrete mixers, mobile radiological units, wreckers or tow trucks, concrete pump trucks, aerial/bucker flat-form trucks, street sweepers, vacuum trucks, garbage compactors, self loader trucks, man lift trucks, lighting trucks, trucks mounted with special purpose equipment and all other types of vehicles designed for a specific use.

Also allowed to be imported are vehicles for the use of an official of the Diplomatic Corps and those authorized to be imported by the Department of Foreign Affairs.

As for the Baguio based client whom I interviewed for BIS, they came to know about the NDI program through a forwarding company based in California that has a local office in Manila. The purpose of the interview was just a process to verify that such importer exists and is a legitimate resident of the city. This time around, the recipient must have already brought home his collector’s motorcycle sent to him by his father as a gift.