Egypt’s Minister of Finance Mohamed Maait said that the government is committed to taking all measures to facilitate the release of imports and ease the burdens on investors against the global crises that have affected the global economy.
Maait also affirmed his keenness to respond to the industrial and commercial community — taking into account the current local and global conditions — and give importers enough time to complete the procedures necessary for customs release.
Furthermore, it was decided not to allow the customs administrations to refer any of the goods in ports or temporary stores — including goods that are perishable or diminished — to the department responsible for neglected goods or attempting to sell them. This would only be acceptable except after a direct approval is taken from the Minister of Finance. The concerned department is required to submit a memorandum to show the condition of the goods and the date of their expiry.
The minister stressed that the government is keen on removing any obstacles facing the business community and is doing its best to prevent the accumulation of goods at the ports. He also pointed out that collecting custom fines from investors and importers has recently been suspended due to the late completion of customs procedures, with the aim of not imposing fines on importers due to circumstances out of their hands.
According to the Egyptian minister, shipping agencies were allowed to transfer imported goods from ports to warehouses and dry ports outside customs ports so that the transfer is in the name of shipping agencies or in the name of importers in accordance with the established procedures.
He also pointed out that the Customs Authority has obliged shipping agencies to not release transported shipments except after these agencies issue a “delivery permit” to preserve their dues. This helps investors and importers avoid the additional financial burdens.
Furthermore, Maait said that the ACI System has helped with the implementation of the presidential mandate to apply European and American standards to imported goods to ensure the quality of products. This contributes to protecting Egyptian markets from inferior products.
He explained that there is an integrated system of procedures that enhances the governance of control over ports in cooperation with the National Food Safety Authority, the General Organisation for Export and Import Control, and the Jewellery Stamping Authority.
Moreover, he said that standard specifications have been automated and linked with the customs tariff items and the global standard table for classifying goods, adding that the specification numbers required for each item are clarified according to what was approved by the competent supply authorities.
He explained that the standard specifications for imports are met electronically through the unified national platform Nafeza so that the importer can list the commodity instead of looking for its number in the global standard table for classifying commodities.
Finally, Maait affirmed his ministry’s keenness to sustainably modernise the customs system and rely on the most advanced electronic systems in the management of customs ports in accordance with the latest international standards and experiences.
This helps facilitate the movement of internal and external trade, localise the industry, improve the competitiveness of local products, and facilitate procedures for the Egyptian business community by seeking to reduce the customs release time.
