Path cleared for smoother cargo clearance

Trade facilitation and cargo clearance in Barbados are about to significantly improve as the Barbados Customs and Excise Department gets ready to fully roll out its Pre-Clearance of Cargo system and Trusted Trader programme.

However, Comptroller of Customs Owen Holder says it will be critical for all stakeholders to give full compliance for the modernisation system to work and for the benefits to be realised.

Suggesting that the delay in cargo clearance was the number one bugbear for stakeholders, Holder told a Barbados Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI) information webinar on Wednesday that currently, only about two per cent of cargo was being cleared through the pre-clearance system, which is still in the pilot phase.

The pre-clearance of cargo initiative allows for the submission and processing of information prior to the arrival of a shipment allowing for faster clearance of imports, while the Trusted Trader programme, which is also still in the pilot phase with just over 28 companies, allows for importers to gain certain benefits, engage in a level of self regulation and predictable level of engagement with Customs, and enjoy a smoother clearance process.

Holder said the two initiatives were designed to better facilitate trade, reduce costs and better use scarce resources, and enhance trading activities at the island’s border.

“What now is required is for importers to use the facility and submit declaration information to complete the pre-arrival process,” Holder said.

“Ninety-eight per cent of imported goods are processed after their arrival. This means that after arrival, entries are submitted, duties are paid, risk management is conducted and goods are cleared through the various lanes (green lane or red lane),” said Holder.

He said this was not a desirable situation since it continued to result in bottlenecks and delayed times in goods being cleared at the Bridgetown Port.

In fact, he said with an increase in shipments by about 50 per cent in recent times, none of the cargo was pre-cleared although a lot of those imports consisted of non-commercial value and diminishable items that did not attract duties. This contributed to delays.

Holder indicated that as of April 15 there were about 100 containers in the Bridgetown Port that have not been entered in the system.

“Is this acceptable? I say no, especially when we have a pre-arrival clearance process and a system that can process entries within seconds after their submission to Customs. Certainly, with these statistics business can’t be as usual,” he declared.

The Comptroller disclosed that the Customs and Excise Department was in the process of testing an International Air Transport Association (IATA) module to facilitate the quick clearance of goods, including documents and diminishable items through the air mode.

He told the business community that the border control agency had all the necessary processes in place to facilitate pre-clearance of goods and all that is now required is “the cooperation of traders”.

He said the benefits of the process included reduced delay at border crossing and entry points, reduced release time, savings on storage fees and improvement ratings on trading across borders.

“I am sure that the trading community is aware of these processes the pre-arrival clearance process will become a norm,” said Holder.

President of the BCCI Anthony Branker welcomed the pre-clearance initiative, saying it should “go a long way” in improving the doing business environment when it comes to border trade.

With the Trusted Trader programme now poised for expansion by the end of next month, the Customs and Excise Department is currently carrying out investigations of companies in the pilot phase.

This programme was implemented in March 2020 as part of the comprehensive Barbados Economic Recovery and Transformation (BERT) programme started in 2018.

Among the objectives of the Trusted Trader programme are to ensure greater transparency and compliance with the Customs and Excise Department’s legal framework and maximise revenue collection.

Deputy Comptroller of Customs Cheryl-Ann Cumberbatch, who has responsibility for compliance and enforcement, said more importers are now able to submit applications to join the programme.

During the webinar, it was also disclosed that the Customs and Excise Department was in discussions with the International Monetary Fund and the Caribbean Regional Technical Assistance Centre (CARTAC) to implement a system that would categorise importers in Barbados into three categories of risk – high, medium and low.
marlonmadden@barbadostoday.bb