By SKM
October 27, 2026
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s textile industry has challenged the performance of the Federal Board of Revenue’s (FBR) Faceless Customs Assessment (FCA) system, citing longer assessment times, a sharp increase in review requests and mounting clearance bottlenecks, while urging the government to abandon plans to shift the Central Appraising Unit (CAU) from Karachi to Islamabad.
In a letter to FBR Chairman Rashid Mahmood Langrial, the All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) has called for an independent review of the system, warning that customs delays are increasing import costs, tying up industrial working capital and threatening the smooth supply of raw materials to export-oriented manufacturing units.
Citing figures attributed to an FBR review committee, APTMA said average assessment time had risen from 25.6 hours to 40.2 hours, while the share of consignments cleared within 48 hours had dropped from 84% to 70%. Review requests reportedly increased from 6% to 14%, referrals to senior officers climbed from 6% to 11%, and laboratory referrals nearly doubled.
The figures have raised fresh questions about whether the faceless assessment model is delivering the efficiency gains expected from customs automation. According to APTMA, the review committee reportedly found no improvement in assessment quality and advised against further rollout pending a comprehensive review.
The association, however, has stressed that it supports the FBR’s objective of ensuring transparent, impartial and efficient customs assessment. Its principal concern is that implementation problems are imposing additional costs on businesses without delivering faster clearance or greater certainty for importers.
The proposed relocation of the CAU to Islamabad has emerged as another major point of contention. APTMA argues that moving the unit away from Karachi, Pakistan’s principal seaborne import hub, could complicate coordination among appraisers, examination staff, laboratories and port terminals, potentially aggravating existing delays.
Karachi’s proximity to ports, examination facilities, laboratories and technical personnel makes it central to the customs clearance process, particularly for industrial imports requiring specialised assessment. APTMA has warned that relocation could also lead to the loss of experienced appraisers, higher administrative costs and operational disruption.
The association has pointed out that Customs General Order (CGO) No. 06 of 2024 provides for the CAU’s location in Karachi. It has argued that faceless assessment does not require a physical relocation because consignments can be allocated randomly to appraisers through electronic systems while the unit remains close to the country’s principal import gateway.
Behind the dispute lies a broader concern for the textile industry: delays in clearing imported inputs can quickly translate into higher production costs and missed export deadlines. Textile mills depend on the timely availability of imported chemicals, machinery, specialised materials and other production inputs. Prolonged clearance, APTMA maintains, exposes businesses to demurrage and detention charges, blocks working capital and disrupts manufacturing schedules.
The association has also flagged disputes over declared import values, inconsistent tariff classification and outdated valuation rulings, alleging that importers face adverse assessments without adequate justification or sufficient consideration of the technical specifications of their goods. It has called for greater use of specialist expertise in textiles, chemicals and machinery, where product characteristics can materially affect valuation and classification decisions.
Repeated queries, examinations and laboratory referrals have further complicated the process, according to the association. APTMA has also identified WeBOC and Pakistan Single Window (PSW) outages, delays involving consignments under the Export Facilitation Scheme (EFS), blocked securities and a lack of publicly available performance data as issues requiring urgent attention.
In response, APTMA has demanded that the CAU remain in Karachi and that further expansion or major changes to the FCA system be suspended until an independent review is completed in consultation with trade and industry. It has also proposed a dedicated backlog-clearance cell to expedite pending consignments, particularly those linked to export production, alongside green-channel treatment for Authorised Economic Operators and compliant importers.
Seeking enforceable service standards, the association has proposed assessment and first-review completion within 24 hours, second reviews within 48 hours, examination within 24 hours of grounding and laboratory results within 72 hours. It has called for automatic escalation when these deadlines are missed and provisional release under Section 81 of the Customs Act, 1969, wherever legally applicable.
APTMA has further sought automatic delay and detention certificates and extended free time where clearance is held up by Customs-related delays or documented system outages. It has urged the FBR to coordinate with terminals and shipping lines to ensure that such certificates are recognised, helping prevent importers from bearing costs arising from delays beyond their control.
Among the other proposed reforms are the restoration of specialised assessment desks for textiles, chemicals and machinery, electronic queries and video hearings, reasoned assessment decisions, updated valuation rulings and timely reviews under Section 25D of the Customs Act. The association has also called for improved coordination between examination and laboratory staff, the use of accredited private laboratories where appropriate, and advance classification rulings to reduce recurring disputes.
In a further push for accountability, APTMA has proposed incorporating assessment reversals into officers’ performance evaluations and publishing monthly FCA performance statistics. It has also called for an independent Time Release Study based on World Customs Organization methodology to measure actual clearance times and identify the stages responsible for delays.
The association has proposed a standing monthly review committee comprising the FBR, APTMA, Pakistan Business Council, Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry, Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Overseas Investors Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and customs agents’ associations. The committee would monitor progress, review performance and provide a regular mechanism for resolving persistent operational problems.
APTMA has sought an early meeting with the FBR chairman to discuss the proposed reforms with representatives of member mills. The intervention places the spotlight on a growing policy challenge: how to modernise customs assessment without undermining the speed and predictability of import clearance on which Pakistan’s manufacturing and export sectors depend.
The immediate question for the FBR is whether the existing system should be expanded or structurally altered before its performance concerns are independently examined. For the textile industry, the priority is clear: faster clearances, consistent assessments and a customs framework that reduces costs rather than adding to the burden on exporters. Ends
