As a result of the exponential growth of e-commerce at the global level, the region's customs authorities will face multiple challenges in the coming years in order to carry out their functions properly.
The current context, with consumers changing their preferences and increasingly valuing ease, convenience and time savings in their purchases, has forced companies to strengthen their online marketing channels, which in turn makes it necessary for Customs to optimize their processes.
Companies which are certified as Authorized Economic Operators will be able to reduce paperwork times and have priority at customs.
In order to access this certification interested companies must be up to date with tax and customs payments, tax requirements, and review legal and administrative processes, industrial safety and human resources. The cost of certification varies according to the processes which need to be improved.
The Chamber of Commerce and the General Department of Customs have signed an agreement for exchange of information and monitoring of imports in order to control the illegal transit of goods.
From a statement issued by the Chamber of Commerce of Costa Rica:
Monday October 27, 2014. The Chamber of Commerce of Costa Rica (CCCR) and the General Department of Customs (DGA) on Monday signed an Agreement for Cooperation Trade Transparency in order to combat all unfair practices in trade, such as smuggling, counterfeiting and other illegal practices.
The tender for the operation and maintenance of scanners at the National Customs Authority has been interrupted by two companies complaining about the process.
Prensa.com reports: "Consorcio Cotecna and Consorcio SGS Scanning Panamá opposed the decision of the evaluation committee which disqualifed them and declared the winner to be Consorcio Mc Millan, Ebco, Nuctech".
On 20 and 21 May, representatives from more than 20 countries in America will discuss in El Salvador the features of this tool and its influence on foreign trade.
From a press release issued by the Ministry of Economy in El Salvador:
El Salvador has been selected as the site to host the Third Meeting of Single Foreign Trade Windows, an event that is sponsored by the Inter-American Development Bank and will be attended by representatives from 27 countries of Latin.
Differences in customs processes between Central American countries to date are preventing them from trading as a block, in this case, with the EU.
According to the manager of the Integration and Trade Sector at the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), Antoni Estevadeordal, trade agreements themselves are not a guarantee of success."It is not enough to have a policy of openness.
The function of the AEO is to contribute to the implementation of safety guidelines of the World Customs Organization in order to have a secure supply chain.
From Wikipedia:
"The AEO certificate, issued by customs authorities in the EU and many other countries using the same or a similar name, is a trusted certificate which Customs offices give to traders who meet certain requirements which demonstrate to the customs offices their reliability regarding customs processes, solvency and safety. It is granted to operators involved in the chain of international trade, whether natural or legal persons, provided that the professional activity of these operators is subject to customs regulations, such as importers, exporters, manufacturers, representatives at customs offices, bearers, carriers , terminal operators, shippers etc.
Advances made in the past two years in the Central American customs offices are still not sufficient, and related costs amount to 38% of logistics costs.
The best advances have been made in customs processes relating to merchandise transported between Central American countries.
Investigating the topic Elnuevodiario.com.ni reports that "The biggest problem is imports from countries like the U.S.
Experts from the World Customs Organization (WCO) will gather today, December 9, in Panama to discuss counterfeiting and piracy.
In the meeting, in which twelve countries of the region are participating, new routes identified for the transit of counterfeit goods and new methods used to counterfeit products will be publicised.
An expert from the WCO, Christophe Zimmermann, said, "This initiative will demonstrate the effectiveness of risk analysis of information provided by Customs to prevent the crime of piracy.
Within one year, the country could be certified as an Authorized Economic Operator by the World Customs Organization.
This certification oversees the entire logistics chain involved in international commerce.
Angela Bigueur, head of the Customs Authority, told Laprensagrafica.com that “the country wants the certification to be recognized internationally for its logistics and tax processes”.
The World Customs Organization and SIECA will sign an agreement to support Central America in harmonizing and standardizing custom procedures.
Currently, Central America has 96% of its tariff code harmonized, and the remaining 4% will be discussed over the next two years. A unique, harmonized tariff code should be ready by 2012, when the Association Agreement with the European Union is expected to come into effect.
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