The government has extended the period of relief of customs duty and General Consumption Tax (GCT) on a specified list of items, up to January 15 next year.

The relief period was granted to facilitate donations to Jamaica in the wake of Hurricane Melissa.

The ministry of finance explained that this is due to the Christmas season and the intervening holidays, during which the capacity of shippers, freight forwarders, brokers and the ports were constrained significantly.

Portfolio minister Fayval Williams noted that some donors may not have had their donations arrive on or before today December 31, which is the cut-off date for relief of import duty and GCT upon importation of selected items.

Mrs Williams stressed that January 15 will be a hard stop.

She said while the government welcomes the gifts and donations, the decline in tax revenues at customs since Hurricane Melissa has been significant, totaling approximately $12 b. 

She expressed appreciation for the donations made to Jamaica.