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CGO 07 of 2026: a 30-day appeal against classification decisions, and 90 days for provisionally assessed cases

ClearAgent Team·
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Written 28 October 2026. On 27 October 2026, FBR issued Customs General Order No. 07 of 2026. It makes two changes to the procedure for settling classification disputes in Pakistan Customs. It adds a route to appeal a classification decision to the Federal Board of Revenue within thirty days. It also sets a shorter deadline for disputes in cases that were provisionally assessed. The two changes do not carry the same commencement date, and that difference matters if you have a dispute open.

Where this procedure lives

The procedure is paragraph 2 of Customs General Order No. 12 of 2002, dated 15 June 2002, headed "Methodology for settlement of classification disputes". FBR rewrote that paragraph by CGO 02 of 2025 (24 March 2025) and amended it again by CGO 01 of 2026 (6 January 2026). As those orders now read:

  • Routine classification matters are decided by the Collectorates themselves. A dispute may be referred, with the Collector's or Director's approval, to the Classification Centre at the Collectorate of Customs Appraisement-East, Karachi. Under the Centre's functions, the reference may also come from the traders.
  • A classification committee decides disputes and issues classification rulings. Since CGO 01 of 2026 it comprises "any three Collectors of the South region, as notified by the Chief Collector of Customs (Appraisement-South)".
  • The trader or their authorised representative is invited to the committee meeting where the case is presented.
  • Sub-paragraph (vii) is the deadline. Fresh disputes are to be decided through classification rulings within 120 days of receipt in the Classification Centre or committee. The Chief Collector of Customs Appraisement-South can extend that by 30 days, for reasons to be recorded.
  • Sub-paragraph (viii) says the rulings are circulated as a Public Notice to the trade, customs formations and the Board.

What CGO 07 of 2026 changes

1. A shorter deadline for provisionally assessed cases (S.No. (i))

In sub-paragraph (vii), after "one hundred twenty (120) days", the order adds "(ninety (90) days for those cases which are provisionally assessed under section 81 of the Customs Act, 1969)". The later reference to the "time period of 120 days" becomes "120/90", so the 30-day extension applies to either period.

The 90 days applies only to cases provisionally assessed under section 81. Every other fresh dispute keeps the 120-day period.

2. An appeal to FBR (S.No. (ii))

A new sub-paragraph (viii-a) is inserted after the Public Notice provision:

"Any person aggrieved with the classification decision, may file an appeal before the Federal Board of Revenue in terms of Rule 2 of the General Rules for Interpretation of the First Schedule to the Customs Act, 1969 within thirty days of the issuance of the Public Notice."

The thirty days runs from the issuance of the Public Notice that circulates the ruling. It does not run from the date of CGO 07 itself.

When each change takes effect

Paragraph 2 of the order says: "The amendment at S.No.(i) shall take effect from the 1st January, 2027." So the 90-day deadline for section 81 cases starts on 1 January 2027.

The order gives no commencement date for S.No. (ii), the appeal. It defers the first change expressly and is silent on the second. We are not going to settle from that silence whether the appeal route is available today. If you have a ruling you may want to challenge, confirm with your consultant or the Classification Centre before relying on the thirty days. A dateline is not the same thing as commencement; we explain the difference in Is an SRO in force?.

What to do with this

  • When a classification ruling affecting your goods is circulated, note the date the Public Notice was issued. That is the anchor for the thirty days in (viii-a).
  • If a dispute concerns goods provisionally assessed under section 81, the 90-day period takes effect on 1 January 2027. The order does not say how it treats disputes already pending on that date.
  • For how PCT headings work in the first place, see What is an HS code in Pakistan?

Read from FBR's own documents on 28 October 2026, at the page images:

We have not read section 81 or the General Rules for Interpretation for this article. This is general information, not legal advice.