No more duty-free TVs from 26 Aug as govt fights rupee fall

Were you planning to buy a ‘cheap’ TV set from Singapore on your next holiday? Well, you can forget it.Now, get ready to shell out more for getting a flat panel television set from Thailand,Dubai or Singapore.

The government on Monday banned the duty-free import of flat screen televisions by air travellers in a bid to prop up the rupee, which fell below the 63 level against US dollar.

The government, according to a notification, decided to “disallow the import of flat panel (LCD/LED/Plasma) televisions as part of free baggage allowance” with effect from 26 August.

Air travellers currently can bring a flat screen television for personal use without paying any duty.This would mean air travellers bringing in TVs as part of their baggage from 26 August would have to pay customs duty.

A Times of India article notes how the price arbitrage had turned into a lucrative business proposition with several carriers taking flights to South East Asia and making a killing in the domestic market. A32-inch TV set inThailandcosts around Rs 17,000 to Rs 18,000 and in India it ranges between Rs 30,000 and Rs 35,000.

The import duty will definitely be a spoiler for the business.

And guess who’s happy with the move? Indian TV manufacturers. Sunil Nayyar, head of sales Sony India told ToI,“We have been waiting for it for a long time. It’s a win-win situation as the government will also get revenue.”

In order to contain the Current Account Deficit (CAD) and arrest rupee depriciation, government has raised the duty on gold, platinum and silver to 10 percent.Finance Minister P Chidambaram said that steps would be taken to compress import of non-essential goods.

The value of rupee touched all-time low of 63.30 to a dollar in the afternoon trade.

With inputs from PTI