Problems persist in the process of reviewing merchandise at the border posts in Amatillo and La Hachadura causing delays to cargo trucks.
Double review processes, recurring failures with x-ray machine inspection and the absence of a contingency plan for unforeseen delays has generated delays of between 19 and 23 hours for the approval of entry and exit of goods, said the Salvadoran Association of International Freight Carriers (ASTIC).
Central American countries need to implement a series of improvements in customs procedures in order to meet the requirements of the agreement for the facilitation of international trade.
Within two years, as part of the commitments made in the 2001 Doha Round of the Bali Agreement, signed in 2013 by 160 nations belonging to the World Trade Organization (WTO), including Central America, governments will have to harmonize their customs systems ensuring trade facilitation. However, to date institutional progress on issues established by the Agreement such as simplification, harmonization and automation of procedures for international trade have not happened, particularly in relation to the requirements and formalities for import, export and transit of border freight.
Employers are demanding greater efficiency and speed in the process of monitoring and reviewing merchandise in the country's customs offices.
Between three hours and several weeks is the time it can take a van with merchandise to have its permit to enter or leave the territory processed at the office of El Guasaule in Somotillo, Chinandega, the third most important border in the country, through which 300 to 400 trucks pass per day."The problem is repeated in the 11 air, sea and land customs offices in Nicaragua."
A month after having implemented it only 12% of importers have registered and less than 1% of users use it for their foreign trade operations.
To date only 4,700 users have registered their company details with the VAI electronic platform designed to handle the issue of non-tariff import permits. The importer enters their forms, makes the corresponding payments electronically, sends the information to the institution, receives a response and this allows them to access the Customs Declaration reported in an electronic permit which the user receives.
The authorities have put an end to the control process implemented over the last six months and whose results have left exporters and the logistics sector in doubt.
The Superintendency of Tax Administration (SAT) ended the intervention activity without making known the figures for collections or the concrete results of the intervention operation.
According to lahora.com.gt, "the Party of National Unity of Hope (UNE) showed data on the downward trend in the collection of customs, which they claim shows that the operative intervention did not work."
While the government attributes the problems to a resistance to change on the part of customs agencies, they themselves indicate deficiencies in the process of reviewing goods.
Days ago, the Ministry of Economic Development issued a statement attributing the responsibility of delays to customs agents: "... the government wants to make public that the current delays in port operations are not attributable to the change of operator, nor the intervention of the DEI, but are caused by certain customs agents in a total act of corporate irresponsibility, who have neglected the continuous calls by the Economic Development Secretariat (SDE) to attend to procedures to unload containers which must undergo reviews by customs offices."
The economic growth which will be generated by the canal expansion will increase the demand for skilled workers in the logistics industry.
Foreign trade, port planning and management, border management and maritime transport are some of the sectors that require skilled labor in the coming years in Panama.
Prensa.com reports that "Approximately 5000 experts will be required for the logistics sector over the next five years confirmed the president of the Logistics Business Council (Coel), Daniel Isaza".
Exporters are complaining because customs clearance procedures at the port terminal which used to be completed in three days now take 20.
Ever since Operadora Portuaria Centroamericana assumed control of operation of the cargo terminal at Puerto Cortes, the processes for inspections and unloading have delayed goods by considerably more days than before, raising costs for exporters and importers, who have to wait up to 20 days to take their products out of the port.
The Guatemalan Exports Association is organizing a course to show in detail how to meet the requirements for exporting under the terms of the FTA.
In order to find out in detail the procedures for successfully gaining a certificate of origin from major FTAs and avoid problems in customs operations, the School of Foreign Trade at AGEXPORT, will hold on March 31, 2014 a course entitled: "Certificates of Origin under the main commercial treaties signed by Guatemala Export / Import".
Businessmen are complaining about delays occurring in the process of non-intrusive inspection of goods.
The productive sector is decrying the fact that the processes for non intrusive inspections of merchandise in Customs Offices in Guatemala are making costs more expensive and extending the time it takes to make exports and imports.
"Fernando Lopez, president of the board of the IGC, said that in the past 15 months the delays have caused an increase in costs because of the long time it takes for inspections."
European business people have criticised errors made by customs officials in implementing the terms of the Association Agreement.
After three months of the entry into force of the Association Agreement between Central America and the European Union, a lack of knowledge on the part of customs authorities has complicated the implementation of the trade agreement, as explained by the Chambers of Commerce and Industry of Spain (CAMACOES) Italy (Camcig) and Germany.
Pressures on the customs sector have ensured that the ruling includes its recommendations, diluting the threat of strikes in customs offices.
The bill on the Agile Import Counter (VAI by its initials in Spanish) is looking for approval in Congress after the approval of resolutions. The union is expecting the promises it was made to be fulfilled.
The Corporation of Guatemala Customs Agents (CAAG) reported that, "the Presidential Commissioner Juan Carlos Paiz, will be responsible for making changes to the initiative of the respective law and submitting them to Congress no later than Monday March 10. "
The aim is to optimize the entry and exit of cargo at the container terminal where there have been long lines and delays in procedures.
After some problems arose last week, executives from Operadora Portuaria de Centroamérica (OPC) pledged to streamline the procedures for the entry and exit of cargo at Empresa Nacional Portuaria.
Mariano Torres, director of operations at OPC said that "we are working on making the export formalities available to be processed via the web because that would halve the amount of paperwork at terminal for shipping companies." It is estimated that the system will be ready next week.
The Tax Authority of Guatemala has denied the existence of a consensus among Central American countries to implement a unified charge.
The Superintendency of Tax Administration (SAT) of Guatemala denied that there is a consensus among countries to implement a one-time charge for reviewing scanned merchandise flowing through the region, as announced by the Directorate General of Customs of El Salvador.