KARACHI: The laws have prohibited export from Pakistan of jewellery or precious stones except with the general or special permission of the State Bank (SBP).
The State Bank has granted general permission vide its Notification No.F.E.3/85-SB dated the 15th August, 1985, under which any person can take out of Pakistan at any one time to any country outside Pakistan, precious stones or jewellery other than articles made wholly or mainly of gold as under:
(a) India: nil.
(b) Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Iran up to Rs.1,000/- in value
(c) Any other country or place not up to Rs.2,000/- in value mentioned in (b) above
“No person is allowed to take any jewellery to India without the approval of the State Bank.”
(i) Under the State Bank Notification No.FE.3/85-SB dated the August 15, 1985, any person other than a person domiciled in Pakistan or India, who is returning to his/her own country, may take with him/her any precious stones or jewellery brought by him/her into Pakistan without limit if the same had been declared to the Customs Authorities on the prescribed form at the time of his/her arrival in Pakistan, and precious stones and jewellery, other than articles made wholly or mainly of gold purchased in Pakistan up to a further Rs.10,000/- in value.
The intention is that this facility will be available only to the families of foreign nationals who are working in Pakistan with the permission of the concerned authorities. Foreign nationals and overseas Pakistanis can also take out gold, jewellery, precious/semi precious stones up to the value of $10,000/- in all provided the same have been purchased against encashment of foreign exchange brought by them from abroad.
(ii) Applications to carry jewellery to India or to other countries in excess of the limit prescribed in para 13 ibid, should be made to the State Bank in duplicate on Form ‘J’. The application should be accompanied by an undertaking from the traveler that should the State Bank accede to his/her request, he/she will bring back the jewellery to Pakistan within the specified period, declare it to the Customs and produce proof thereof to the State Bank.
Where such requests are allowed by the State Bank, it will issue a license for the Customs in duplicate.
While the original copy of the license will be surrendered to the Customs at the time of taking out the jewellery, the duplicate thereof will be retained by the traveller. On his/her return to Pakistan, the jewellery brought back by the traveller will be declared to the Customs who will endorse the duplicate copy of the license.
The duplicate copy of the license endorsed by the Customs will be produced by the travellers to the State Bank within the specified period in pursuance of the undertaking given by him/her at the time of departure.
