Defaulters of Law on Letters of Commitment may be fined or jailed up to 10 years –BoG Official
Letters of Commitment is a web-based export document that helps and facilitates exporters to repatriate proceeds to Ghana.
The Deputy Director in charge of Foreign Banking Operations at the Bank of Ghana, Eric Kweku Hammond has emphasized the importance of Letters of Commitment to exporters and the need for them to be proactive in its acquisition.
He has therefore reminded them of the fact that defaulters of the law regulating Letters of Commitment can either be fined or jailed for up to 10 years.
Letters of Commitment is a web-based export document that helps and facilitates exporters to repatriate proceeds to Ghana.
Speaking on the Eye on Port program, Mr. Hammond cautioned exporters against waiting for their goods to be ready for shipment before they begin processes to acquire Letters of Commitment.
He added that in situations where exporters foresee that they are unable to repatriate their exports within the initial 60 days, they can utilize the query system in the LOC regime which will allow them to apply for an extension.
Using a scenario, the Deputy Director of FBO said that if exporters refuse to monitor their non-conformity status, they would unluckily have to wait till the following Monday for them to be attended to, in the event that their goods get to the port after 5 pm on Friday.
On the digitization of the LOC system, Mr. Hammond said that it has made it very difficult for one to circumvent and that the Integrated Customs Management System(ICUMS) that hosts the LOC is capable of blocking non-compliant transactions.
Also on the LOC, he mentioned that it has since its adoption in 2016, enabled the country to obtain the needed foreign exchange to shore up the national reserve, strengthen the cedi, and several benefits.
