09 September 2010
Yesterday I paid the $500 and received the investment certificate (woo hoo!). Then I went promptly to meet with a clearing agent (recommended by the man who sold me tires a few weeks ago) who agreed to handle the paperwork necessary to complete the transfer of the vehicle and get the number plates for the truck. He also recommended that I go to the Rwanda traffic police office to request a clearance letter to drive around while the final paperwork is being completed. So, that’s what I did (nervousness cloaked in confidence). I met with CSP Sano (Chief of the Traffic Police), an incredibly gracious man. He understood the situation and said he would prepare the letter for me to pick up tomorrow. All was going so well …
And then I was told today by the clearing agent that in addition to the registration certificate, the investment certificate, and the taxpayer id number (TIN) for MANA, I needed to register for a personal TIN at the Rwanda Revenue Authority (RRA) in order to complete everything necessary for the vehicle. The very kind clearing agent called RRA to ask what I needed to take – simply my passport, passport photos, and about $20 in Rwandan Francs. The process would only take 5-10 minutes, and the TIN would be issued immediately. That alone is amazing! However, it was time to pick up the kids from school and stop by the grocery, so I couldn’t get to RRA this afternoon, not to mention that I didn’t have any more passport photos (having exhausted those when setting up bank accounts). So, I was planning to go first thing in the morning to get the photos, go to RRA for the TIN, and then head back to the clearing agent to sign the papers. However …
Tomorrow is a public holiday (end of Ramadan), so RRA will be closed. Therefore, no TIN until Monday. So probably no number plates until Tuesday. That’s four bonus days to drive the gauntlet of traffic police officers in Kigali. Fortunately, I’m planning to pick up the clearance letter from CSP Sano at 10am, so that should keep me out of jail!