MAURITIUS

COUNTRY REPORT COUNTRY REPORT

CUSTOMS

Sharing Good Practices on Customs Procedures and Facilitation

Presenter GIANDEO MUNGROO

SENIOR CUSTOMS AND EXCISE OFFICER CUSTOMS AND EXCISE DEPARTMENT REPUBLIC OF MAURITIUS

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OBJECTIVE OBJECTIVE The objective of this presentation is to share with you the current practices, procedures and trade facilitation at the Customs Department of the Republic of Mauritius.

SCOPE OF PRESENTATION

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Mauritius the paradise island Objectives of the department Sharing good practices Customs Procedures, Trade Facilitation & Control Risk Management Mauritius Revenue Authority (MRA) Conclusion

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Mauritius The Paradise Island

LOCATION OF MAURITIUS

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An Island of volcanic origin situated

in the South West of the Indian Ocean.

2000 Km 855 Km

ABOUT MAURITIUS

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Mauritius is a paradise island. It is famous for its Sun, Sand and Sea Area of 1865 km2 : about 65 km long and 48 km wide A population of about 1.2 million Climate Tropical seasons: Summer and winter Natural disasters: Cyclones & drought Currency Mauritian rupee

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ABOUT MAURITIUS
Mauritius is a pluri-cultural nation where people of different faiths live harmoniously. The economy is based on Agriculture, Tourism, Textile, Financial Services, ICT, Freeport and Seafood Hub. There is both social and political stability. English is the official language used in the country.

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Objectives of the Customs & Excise Department

Mauritius Customs and Excise Department

The Comptroller of Customs is a Canadian namely Mr. Bert Cunningham

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Objectives of the Customs Department A World Class Customs Service

Attain revenue targets to support Government economic programs Reduce economic distortions associated with smuggling and commercial fraud Create a level the playing field for traders Protection of society, environment, national security Trade facilitation facilitate the movement of goods and persons

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Facilitate honest traders while targeting high risk ones through risk management Increase transparency Reduce discretion and corruption

Objectives of the Customs Department A World Class Customs Service

Upgrade Customs offices & equipment Apply international Customs conventions and best practices. Reduce reliance on pre-clearance cargo inspections by moving to postclearance audit-based controls. Modernize Customs Law and regulations

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Upgrade and enhance CMS system and its supporting procedures/controls. Redress serious human resource constraints.

Trade statistic of Mauritius

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In Mauritius, on a monthly basis, we have an average of 12,000 declarations (Imports) for the clearance of goods, and 80,000 passengers landing at the airport.

Without simplified customs procedures it would have been difficult to: provide trade facilitation exercise control

to know where you have arrived you should know where you are going.

1.

Customs-to-business partnership

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In order to provide a world class customs service, Mauritius Customs has recourse to customs-to-business partnership. Airlines / Shipping Agents

Freight Forwarders

Mauritius Customs

Customs Brokers

Other private & public organisations

Port / Airport Authorities

Staff and Stakeholder Training

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Invite and involve the stakeholders. Let them get the feeling of involvement and participation. Make them committed to customs. Provide them: Training Educate them Tell them your objectives Tell them their benefits Maintain good relationship Come up with a memorandum of understanding

Benefits of customs-to-business partnership

Transparency Customs laws (Acts and Regulations), customs tariffs, list of prohibited and restricted goods are made public and easily available through the Customs website. There is certainty and predictability. Stakeholders know the rules of the game. They know what their obligations are towards customs. Reduce / eliminate opportunities for mistakes Swifter clearance of goods Reduce costs and time for both businesses and customs Increase business opportunities

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Automation, reforms and modernization key factors for trade facilitation

1990: Automated System for Customs Data (ASYCUDA)

Disadvantages:

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Much time spent in manually entering data of declarations into the system Less time spent in doing customs duties Too much discretionary powers to officers Risk of corruption Minimum of 2 days were required for release of goods

2.

Computerize & Automate Processes

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Making the right balance between facilitation and control through automation, risk management and post clearance control audit is a MUST for a modern customs. Improvement in trade facilitation and customs control may be achieved in two (2) ways: Improve on the existing processes using techniques like Total Quality Management (TQM) 5%, 10%, 15% benefits Re-engineer / Re-think the way things are done using techniques like Business Process Re-engineering (BPR) in order to achieve dramatic improvements. 10 times, 100 times, 500 times benefits in terms of cost, quality and service.

1998: Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) based on

UN/EDIFACT
United Nation Electronic Data Interchange for Administration Commerce and Trade Commerce

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Customs Port & Airport Authorities

Gov. Agencies Bank of Mauritius

Airlines / Shipping Agents

Chamber of Commerce & Industry

EDI Network Service Provider

Central Statistical Office Freight forwarders & customs brokers

Freeport Operators

Information Flow

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Stake holders

Submission of electronic manifest Submission of customs declaration Application and approval of import / export permit Electronic Fund Transfer for duty & taxes Transfer of messages between customs & stakeholders Electronic submission of EUR1 & advanced passenger list are in the pipeline

X 25

EDI Service Provider Mauritius Network Services (MNS)

Customs Management System (CMS)

Customs Operations

Allocation of channel to declarations

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Physical Examination is compulsory High risk, high impact Pre-requirements: health certificate, police clearance, import permit etc., are required. Documentary verification needed No Risk Element Delivery Without Verification

Channels

Selectivity criteria for channel allocation

RED CHANNEL

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Random Physical Check (RPC) : 10%, 15% etc Entry Selection Criteria (ESEL) Select declarations on a specific criteria e.g SELECT <Importer Code> FROM <table> WHERE <origin> = <country>
YELLOW CHANNEL

Sensitivity Indicators for declarations with pre-requirements

GREEN CHANNEL

Declarations having a low or practically no risk e.g consignments from Malaysia

Channels enhancement for trade facilitation

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Blue Channel for Fast track is in the pipeline It will be allotted to companies, importers and exporters who are compliant according to a comprehensive customs audit. Paperless environment Privileged, not right ! Keep books / records for post clearance audit purposes Physical inspection where appropriate will be effected at traders premises White Channel for goods requiring clearance from other agencies E.g Agriculture, Health, Fisheries, Police

Flow of declaration

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Flow of declaration
Declarants EDI Service Provider CMS Cashier / EFT Reception Desk Compliance Green Channel Yellow Channel Red Channel Scanning Request from Intelligence Unit Enforcement Units Scanning Unit

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Delivery Allowed PCCU

Examination

Single Window Cargo Inspection

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Single Window
Is a system that allows traders to lodge information with a single body to fulfill all import or export related regulatory requirements

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A single window program is an automated system through which a trader can submit electronic trade declarations to the various (controlling) authorities for processing and approval in a single application. E.g. permits are transmitted and approved electronically. It represents a close cooperation between all parties involved.

Single window goods inspection

Inspection requiring the presence of various authorities are coordinated and carried out at the same time.

Benefits of EDI
Reduce discretionary rights to a minimum Automatic computation of duty and taxes Automatic assignment of officers to declarations Traceability easy to trace out Who did What? When? and Why? 24 hours service. Brokers may send declarations at their convenience Reduce clearance time from 2 days (minimum) to approx. 15 minutes

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Eliminate burdensome procedures, malpractices and opportunities for corruption Streamline procedures to reduce cost and time for both customs & stakeholders Less manual processes, more electronic reconciliations and matching

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Risk Management

3.

Risk Management

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We are moving from the traditional gatekeepers and bag/package openers checking every movement to checking only selected movements that demonstrate the greatest risk. A Risk Management and Intelligence Unit has been set up to manage risk effectively.

Reports directly to

Risk Management & Intelligence Unit

Risk Management Committee

Sources of Risk Management Data

Feedback from Enforcement units / sections Management levels

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Customs Management System CMS

Risk Management & Selectivity Unit

Customs Hotline Feedback from operational staff both port and airport

Feedback from Customs Offence Report Section

Advance manifest details

Centralisation of Risk Management data Coordination between different strategic unit / sections

Risk Management Methodology

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Collect data from different sources, manually as well as electronically Process data using Information Technology as assistance Analyse information Produce report to management with appropriate suggestions Implement decision taken by Risk Management Committee Monitoring and review

Risk Management Methodology

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Data

Process

Information Management Decision

Analyse Information

Implementation Identify Risk Areas

Assess probability, impact

Monitoring and Review the selection criteria

Report with suggestions to Risk Management Committee

Monitoring and review

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Risk Management is not just a one way process.

Collect Data Process Data into Information Analyse the information Identify risk Assess and prioritise Take corrective decisions
Always iterative

Monitor and Review the process through compliance measurement (Feedback)

Effective Risk Management

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For Risk Management to be Successful, communication is of prime importance for having an up to date list of risk indicators

Communication
National Level Police Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) Health, Agriculture, Fisheries Others International Level

WCO Enforcement Bulletin Interpol Regional Intelligence Liaison Office Others..

Communication between law enforcement agencies

At the national level, we get a monthly report of street arrests from the Anti Drug and Smuggling Unit of the police department Monthly report of street arrests
data

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An example .

Risk Management and Selectivity Unit information

Mauritius Customs Database of risk indicators (Always updated)

information

To all enforcement units

4.

Enforcement units

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The major enforcements units of Mauritius Customs include: Customs Drug Unit (CDU) Joint Port Drug Unit (JPDU) comprises of officers from customs and police, initiatives of the UNDCP Flexible Anti Smuggling Team (FAST) Customs Investigation and Intelligence Unit Post Clearance Control Unit

K-9 Unit for drug detection

To effectively and efficiently combat the proliferation of illicit drugs, Mauritius Customs has recourse to a K-9 Unit. Both the dog handlers and the sniffer dogs have been provided specialised training by international experts. Drug detector dogs - named after famous Mauritian Cyclones

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Port

X-Ray Scanners Relocate-able Container-sized at Seaport Pallet-sized at Airport

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Airport

X-Ray Scanners

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Mauritius Revenue Authority MRA

Mauritius Revenue Authority (MRA)

Customs & Excise Dept. Income Tax Dept. Value Added Tax (VAT) Large and small tax payers

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MRA as from 1st July, 2006

The key driver for the establishment of the Mauritius Revenue Authority is to provide: a facilitating environment for improved organisational performance enhanced revenue collections improved compliance and better services to taxpayers

New Customs House

(construction started in April 2006)

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Mer Rouge, Port Louis

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Conclusion

CONCLUSION

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Mauritius Customs is leaving no stone unturned in the process of modernization. We want to provide optimum benefits to legitimate importers, improve international trade, encourage foreign investment and thus become a world class customs department. We are in-line with the principles and best customs practices of WCO international conventions , KYOTO Convention, Arusha Declaration, Framework of standard, WTO and others. We are doing everything possible to achieve an acceptable level of compliance, i.e..above 95%.

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Service, Transparency, Professionalism & Integrity

Thank You Very Much For Your Attention ! Terima Kasih