Kathmandu -Tax evasion has been found in the import of Toyota Hiace vehicles by United Traders Syndicate, the official distributor of Toyota in Nepal.

The Office of the Auditor General reported that the company evaded taxes by using a lower-duty customs subheading during clearance.

 United Traders Syndicate imported various Toyota Hiace models through Birgunj Customs, each with dimensions of 5915/1950/2280 mm, a weight of 2,655 kg, and 14 seats. These vehicles should have been classified under subheading 8702.10.30 (microbus).

Instead, the company declared them under subheading 8702.20.20 (minibus) by adding an extra seat and omitting key requirements like a compressor engine and electric motor.

The customs office cleared the vehicles without verifying if they met legal standards for weight, seating, and other specifications. This misclassification led to tax evasion of Rs 58.208 million.

The Auditor General has instructed the customs office to recover the amount from United Traders Syndicate.

The company, owned by former FNCCI president Suraj Vaidya, imports and sells Toyota vehicles in Nepal.