Civil servants continue to enjoy vehicle import rebate
CIVIL servants continue to enjoy the rebate of duty on motor vehicle imports which Government has extended to qualifying members of the civil service and commissions.
To date, 6 848 public sector workers have benefitted from this scheme.
This initiative is part of a raft of non-monetary benefits extended by the Public Service Commission (PSC) to improve conditions of service in the civil service.
The PSC introduced rebate of duty on motor vehicles following the gazetting of Statutory Instrument 52 of 2019 on March 8, 2019, and subsequently Statutory Instrument 80A of 2022. Government has seen it prudent to continue with this scheme for the benefit of its workers. Below we list the qualifying criteria and application procedures for the scheme:
Who qualifies?
1.A member should have served at least 10 years of continuous service in the public service or service commissions.
2.The member must have a valid driver’s licence and in the case of a member living with disability, a valid driver’s licence of a designated driver.
3.The member must not be subject to any disciplinary proceedings at the time of application.
4.The member must not have benefited from this scheme within a period of five (5) years prior to submission of the application.
Application process
1.The member should approach the human resources director of their ministry for specific information of the value of the rebate they qualify for, which is dependent on the member’s grade within the service.
Currently, the rebate is allowable up to the following limits:
Grade Maximum amount (US$)
B and C 3 500
D and E 5 000 Deputy Director 10 000
2.The member should choose a vehicle not older than ten (10) years from date of manufacture at the time of importation.
3.The member shall submit an application to the head of ministry within which he/ she serves requesting author- ity to import a vehicle.
4.The head of ministry shall clear the member as per criteria outlined above and immediately forward the application and accompanying documents in triplicate to the PSC with the following documents:
◆ Head of ministry recommendation; ◆ Member’s application;
◆ Valid driver’s licence;
◆ Current payslip;
◆ Commercial invoice; and
◆ Bill of lading in case of vehicle purchased beyond Africa.
5.The PSC shall vet the application and immediately submit the application to the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development for approval. The specific timelines for vetting and approval by PSC and Treasury are as follows:
◆ PSC, two weeks from receipt of application from respective ministry. ◆ Ministry of Finance, two weeks after receipt of application from PSC.
6.After Treasury concurrence has been granted, the member may import the vehicle sought.
Please Note
a)Where a member imports a vehicle above the maximum rebate threshold they are entitled to, duty will be payable on the excess.
b)Final processing of the rebate shall be done by the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (ZIMRA).
c)Furthermore, Treasury and ZIMRA reserve the right in terms of the law to disqualify members of the civil service who deliberately under-declare the value of the imported vehicle.
d)Members of the civil service who abuse the facility by importing vehicles on behalf of other persons will be liable to remedial measures that include seizure of the vehicle and/or payment of duty.
Corruption Alert
Processing of the application is wholly free of charge and members are advised to report any demands for payments of any kind by officers at any stage of the process.
SAY NO TO CORRUPTION!
This is part of a series of articles by the Public Service Commission aimed at engaging with and updating the public on matters of public interest that fall within its mandate. For comments, enquiries and questions, please write to feedback@psc.gov.zw.
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