Export Declaration ProcedureUSER GUIDE for CUSTOMS and CUSTOMS BROKERSRMBowen

2015Belize Customs & Excise

CUSTOMS & EXCISE BELIZE

EXPORT DECLARATION

I. OBJECTIVE

To establish all required operations involved in processing and assessing an Export Declaration at Ports of

departure.

II. SCOPE

The present procedure will be utilized and applied at all Ports of departure where goods may leave the country.

III. RESPONSIBILITY

The accomplishment of this procedure is the responsibility of the Exporters or the Brokers acting on his/her

behalf, the Customs Officers involved in activities related to the examination of all goods being exported and

their associated documents, and where applicable, any agency involved in the activities related to the

exportation of goods, and any agency responsible for the custody of the goods in the transit sheds.

IV. LEGAL BASIS

Customs and Excise Duties Act

Customs Regulation Act

Any other enactment which gives the Comptroller of Customs the authority to perform any duty

relating to the exportation of goods.

V. PROCEDURE

A. GENERAL ASPECTS

1. The Customs Export Declaration also known as the Entry is a declaration by the Exporter of the

goods that the account of goods is true and accurate. The purpose of filing a declaration outward

is to ensure:

a. that all exports are accurately detailed;

b. that all documents relating to the export are available for Customs examination; and

CUSTOMS & EXCISE BELIZEc. that all obligations as required by law have been satisfied by the Exporter or Agent.

2. All Export declarations must be submitted through the ASYCUDAWorld system.

3. The responsibility of making an accurate and correct declaration rests with the Exporter. He/she

or the Corporate Entity may appoint an Agent known as a Broker to transact business with the

Customs. The Broker is equally liable as the Exporter to fulfil all obligations.

4. The Exporter or Broker must perform an assessment of all Declarations through the Customs

computer system.

5. An assessed declaration can only be amended by a Post Entry which is done by Customs Examination Officer.

6. All restricted articles such as arms and ammunition, explosives, some narcotic drugs etc. must

conform to the provisions of legislation regulating their exportation. All export licences/permits

must be obtained before the goods are exported out of the country.

7. An original and copy (if available) of all documents must be produced to Customs regardless of what Channel was selected at the selectivity process. Customs may retain the duplicate or the original if the duplicate is not available.

8. British Honduras (Belize) Financial Orders require that all commercial invoices and other documents relating to the import must be kept by Customs for seven years after being entered.

9. The Exporter or Broker shall, at all times, ensure that the classification and valuation of goods is

correct and accurate.

10. The ASYCUDAWorld system through the risk criteria built by Customs will automatically

determine which declarations are to be examined. The following are the possible results of the

selectivity process:

a. A RED Channel implies that a documentary check and physical examination must be

conducted.

b. A YELLOW Channel implies that a documentary check must be carried out.

c. A BLUE Channel implies that a post clearance audit might be conducted at a later date.

CUSTOMS & EXCISE BELIZEd. A GREEN Channel implies that goods might be released and declarant might take

delivery of goods without further documentary or physical examination.

If the system allocates the entry a Green or Blue Channel, the Declarant has been granted an

automatic release of goods without examination, for exportation. However, under special

circumstances, Customs reserves the right to intervene and examine goods that had been

allocated to either Channel.

11. Failure to comply with any procedure shall render the declarant/exporter liable to the penalties

set out in the Customs Act and Regulations.

B. DECLARATION OUTWARDS 1. Commercial goods exported in passenger’s baggage must be declared in the same manner as

goods exported on a cargo manifest.

2. Outwards Declarations shall be in the following types:

a) Exportation;

b) Temporary exportation;

c) Transit and Transhipment; and

d) Re-exportation

Please note that suspense procedures such as warehousing, transit and trans-shipment are defined in

the ‘suspense Declaration procedure.’

C. DESCRIPTION OF THE PROCEDURE

1. ASSESSMENT OF THE DECLARATION

Exporter/Broker

1.1 The Exporter or Broker must access the ASYCUDAWorld system to input the required

information for the declaration. Once completed the data entry process, the user shall carry out the

server consistency check, available in the system.

CUSTOMS & EXCISE BELIZE

1.2 After the server consistency check is ran successfully, the Exporter or Broker must ASSESS the

Declaration in the system. The ASSESSED status of a declaration has legal value and implies

ACCEPTANCE of such information by Customs.

1.3 After requesting Assessment, the system will display: a Declarant Reference

Number, a Customs Reference Number, and an Assessment Number. All three numbers will

be unique to each declaration and in a later stage; any one of them could be used to retrieve

it.

For exports, the Declarant Reference number is made up of the year, the Declarant’s Identification Number and his/her Reference Number. The Customs Reference Number (Registration Number) is preceded by the prefix C and followed by the date when the SAD is registered. The Assessment Number is preceded by the prefix L and followed by the date when the SAD is assessed.

The following shows the particulars of the Declaration Reference

YYYY DECID DECREFNUM

Where:

YYYY Year

DECID Declarant ID

DECREFNUM Declarant Reference Number

The following shows the particulars of the Customs Reference Number

C 123 DDMMYY HR:MIN

Where:

C Customs Series Number

123 Sequence Number

DD/MM/YY Date of Registration

The following shows the particulars of the Customs Assessment Number

L 103 DDMMYY HR: MIN

Where:

L Customs Series Number

103 Sequence Number

CUSTOMS & EXCISE BELIZEDD/MM/YY Date of Registration

1.4 The Importer or Broker must print a copy of the Assessed Declaration forCustoms.

2. SUBMISSION OF DECLARATION & SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS, REQUEST FOR SELECTIVITY AND EXAMINATION

Exporter/Broker (Declarant)

2.1 After the assessment process is completed, the Exporter or Broker must attach all support documents required by Law and deliver the Declaration to Customs Face Vet Officer.

Customs Face Vet Officer

2.2 Customs Face Vet Officer will peruse the documents presented to make sure that hard copies of all attached documents are listed in the “Attached Document Page” of the declaration, and have the same data and information as those registered in the system. The Face Vet Officer will then Trigger Selectivity using the function provided in ASYCUDAWorld. Triggering selectivity processes the declaration through the Risk Management System which selects the declaration for one of the following Channels: Green, Blue, Yellow or Red. For a Yellow, Red or Blue Channel, a Customs Examination Officer is automatically assigned by the system to conduct examination. The Face Vet Officer will note the selected Channel and name of the Examination Officer assigned to the examination by the system.

Green Channel: goods might be released for exportation without further scrutiny.

Blue Channel: Entries selected for post audit will be stamped “BLUE” and the name of selected Officer will be written on the Declaration by the Face Vet Officer. The declaration will be forwarded to the Post Audit Unit.

2.3 The Face Vet Officer will notify the Exporter/Broker of the Channel selected by the system.

2.4 The Exporter/Broker will request the loading of goods for exportation by the Terminal Operator.

Yellow Channel: Entries selected for documentary examination will be stamped “YELLOW” and the name of selected Officer will be written on the declaration by the Face Vet Officer. The declaration will be presented to the Examining Officer.

Red Channel: Entries selected for physical examination will be stamped “RED” and the name of selected Officer will be written on the Declaration by the Face Vet Officer. The declaration will be presented to the selected officer at the Terminal where goods are temporarily stored.

CUSTOMS & EXCISE BELIZEExamination Customs Officer

2.5 When the Customs Officer assigned to the Declaration logs on to the system he/she will receive an ASYCUDAWorld mail which will advise him/her of the Customs Reference Number of the declaration that has been assigned to him/her.

2.6 If the Declaration has been assigned to RED Channel, the Examination officer assigned will receive the documents and perform a thorough documentary Check and physical examination.If the Declaration has been assigned to YELLOW Channel, the Examination officer assigned will receive the documents and perform a thorough documentary examination.2.7 If what has been inspected is in agreement with what has been declared, then the officer will select “yes” in the conform Box in the Inspection Act.2.8 The Examining Officer will re-route the declaration to Green Channel.2.9 The Examining Officer will advise the Exporter/Broker that the declaration has been release.2.10 If what has been inspected is not in agreement with what has been declared, then the officer will select “No” and fill out the details in the Inspection Act. 2.10.1 If a POST-ENTRY is required then the Examination Officer must amend the declaration and assess the amended declaration. 2.10.2 If, due to the POST-ENTRY, a fine has been levied, then it must be paid before granting release of the goods for exportation.The Declarant must make payment of fines to the Cashier. 2.10.3 After corrections have been made, the Declarant must present the amended declaration and proof of payment of fine if any again to the Examining Officer. 2.10.4 The Examination Officer must re-route the Declaration to GREEN Channel, authorising the release of goods for exportation.

3. CONFIRMING THE EXPORT DECLARATION Customs Officer

3.1 Upon registration of the Outwards Manifest, the Customs Officer is required to verify the export declaration against the Waybill. 3.2 If the information is concordant, he/she must proceed to confirm the export declaration by completing in the system the actual date of exportation.

4. FINES AND DETENTION OF GOODS Exporter or Broker

Penalties will be imposed for infractions committed under the Customs Act and Regulations in relation to the exportation of goods. The procedure addresses only pecuniary penalties and detention of the goods. Matters which involve the prosecution of persons under the Customs Legislation or any other enactment will be dealt with according to the rules of the courts.

4.1 A table of offences which may be determined by the imposition of fines and detention of the goods is configured in the system and will be applied by customs officials. 4.2 Payment of fines shall be done at Customs Cashier. 4.3 Detention of goods may be contested by appealing in writing to the Comptroller or the appropriate Customs Committee.

CUSTOMS & EXCISE BELIZECustoms Officers

Examination Officers may impose penalties for infractions, in relation to the exportation of goods, committed

under the Customs Act and Regulations where the offences are not of a criminal nature involving prosecution.

4.4 Payment of fines must be done after the preparation of the post entry, which must be paid at

Customs Cashier.

4.5 Goods detained must be forwarded to the Queen’s Bonded Warehouse as soon aspracticable.

D. USE OF THE DATA FIELDS

DESCRIPTION OF REQUIRED DECLARATION FIELD

BOX FIELD

DESCRIPTION ACTION USE

Office Code System The Customs Office where declaration will be processed

Manifest System The registration number or reference of the manifest. It is made up of the Year and Sequence number (i.e. 2005 341). If it is the reference, it is made up of the Voyage number and Date of departure (dd/mm/yyyy) of the vessel, aircraft or vehicle (i.e.AA922 03/01/2005).

Customs Reference Number System The number assigned automatically by the system when a declaration is accepted. It is made up of Serial Letter and Sequence number (e.g. C 205)

CUSTOMS & EXCISE BELIZEDate System The date of acceptance of a

declaration1 Declaration Model System The declaration model

selected by the user

2 Exporter/Supplier NameCompany/ Address and City

Mandatory

MandatoryOptional

The name of the person or Company who ships the goods to Belize in the case of imports and the place and city of dwelling. In case of Import the Exporter is residing outside the country of destination and consequently his information does not exist in the reference data tables. Thus, his information is entered manually as written in the transaction’s documents. In the case of Export, his information should be stored in the relevant reference table and could be filled in automatically either popped up or using the finder. The Exporter in that case is the person/organization who is exporting the goods in case of exports.

3 Page Number System Shows the actual page number and the total number of pages for the whole declaration.

4 Lists Reserved for future use

5 Items Displays the total number of items declared in the declaration

6 Number of Packages Mandatory The total number of packages (piece count) for the declaration. The number stated on the transport document should be used for bulk goods. The number of packages can never be 0.

7 Declarant Reference Number Mandatory A number given to the

CUSTOMS & EXCISE BELIZEdeclaration by the Declarant from his/her register to identify the declaration. The System will always include the year when the declaration was completed. The reference number cannot repeat in the same year.

8 Consignee/Number/Name/Address Mandatory

The name and place of dwelling for the person or organization that the goods belong to in Belize.

8A Consignee ID Optional

9 Financial Responsible No

Optional

The Person or Organisation responsible for either the transfer or repatriation of the funds relating to a transaction other than the Consignee.

10 Country of Last Consignment Mandatory The last country where the goods were placed on board the means of transportation before arriving to Belize

11 Trading country Mandatory The nation from which the goods are being traded. It may not be the country of origin.

12 Value details Mandatory The total amount of the additional charges and deductions comprising transport costs, insurances, packing etc

13CAP

Optional Common Agricultural Policy. Reserved for future use

14 Declarant Representative Number

Name and Address

Mandatory The identifier given by Customs to a person/Organization authorized as clearing agent for importersThe name and place of dwelling for the person or organization acts as clearing agent for importers in

CUSTOMS & EXCISE BELIZEBelize.

15 Country of ExportMandatory

The nation from which the goods are first exported or consigned.

16Country of Origin Mandatory

The nation where the goods were manufactured or grown.

17 Country of Destination

Mandatory

The country of which the goods are intended for. It would always be Belize in the case of imports.

18 Identity and Nationality of Active means of Transport at departure

Mandatory

The name of the vessel, aircraft or vehicle used to convey the goods at the time of presentation (departure for export, arrival for import) of the consignment to a Customs office in the context of a goods declaration.

The country in which the vessel, aircraft or vehicle used to convey the goods is registered

19

Container

Mandatory An indication whether goods are transported in a container or not. If goods are loaded in a container, the value should be “1”, if it is not the case, it should be “0”.

20 Delivery terms

Mandatory

The terms of delivery specified in the sale contract between the buyer and the seller of the declared goods.

21 Identity and Nationality of Active means of Transport at border

Mandatory The name of the vehicle used to convey the goods.

The country in which the vehicle used to convey the goods is registered

22 Currency Code & Total Amount Invoiced

Mandatory The currency code in which the goods are invoiced. The total monetary amount

CUSTOMS & EXCISE BELIZEcharged in respect of one or more invoices associated with the currency in which goods were purchased. The red underline draws the user’s attention to fill in the general valuation note form.

23 Exchange rate System The rate at which one specified currency is expressed in another specified currency.

The appropriate exchange rate is filled automatically by the system after selecting the currency code as issued by the competent authorities

24 Nature of TransactionOptional

An indication of the contract under which the goods are supplied

25 Mode of transport at Border Mandatory The code corresponding to the active means of transport at the border

26 Inland Mode of transportOptional

The code corresponding to the means of transport which will undertake the internal movement of the goods

27 Place of Discharge Optional The place where goods will be discharge.Name of a seaport, airport, freight terminal or other place at which goods are loaded onto the means of transport being used for their carriage.

28 Financial and banking data bank codeTerms of Payment

Optional Reserved for future useThe financial agreement between the buyer and seller of the goods

29 Office of Entry Mandatory The port of entry (customs office) at which the goods enter the customs territory

CUSTOMS & EXCISE BELIZEof destination (Belize). This field is completed only when the goods being declared entered at a different Customs office.

30 Location of goods

Mandatory

Identifies the Customs area where the goods are stored. The code selected must match the code assigned at the transport document (Bill of Lading or Airway bill)

31

“Packages and Description of Goods”Marks and Type of packages Optional

The hand-written or typed identifiers placed on the packages by the export/supplier. The kind of package code is chosen from a drop down menu and corresponding text is printed on the next line.

No of Packages Mandatory The amount of packages for the particular item being declared. When a number of different commodities are enclosed in a single package, this box will be completed only for the first item entering “1” and rest of the other items will be left with no value.

Container numbers Mandatory The marks and/or number(s) which identify the container(s)

Tariff Description Mandatory According to the commodity code selected for the item, the system will display the tariff description

Commercial Description Mandatory The description sufficiently precise to enable immediate and unambiguous identification and

CUSTOMS & EXCISE BELIZEclassification of the goods. If the space is not enough to fully describe the goods, use box 46 at Additional Info field to complete the description

32Item No

System

Identifies the item number currently being completed. It is automatically completed by the computer. The maximum amount of items permitted by declaration is 200

33 Commodity Code Mandatory

The tariff code which classifies the goods being declared according to the Common External Tariff.

34Country Origin CodeC.O.O Code Mandatory

The code for the nation where the goods were manufactured, produced or grown.Part b is reserved for future use

35Gross Mass kg Mandatory

The total weight in kilos of the goods including packages

36 Preference CodeOptional

Identification of a preferential treatment for the goods under a bilateral or preferential treatment signed by the Government.

37 ProcedureMandatory

The first part (Customs Procedure Code) identifies the treatment which the goods are to receive. The second part is known as the additional CPC code used to identify if the goods are claiming a special duty/tax treatment.

38 Net Mass Kg Mandatory The net weight (gross mass minus packaging) in kilos of the goods being declared

39 Quota Optional Reserved for future use

CUSTOMS & EXCISE BELIZE

40 Summary Declaration/Previous Document

(Transport document)

Mandatory The identifier of a previous Customs document. The bill of lading or airway bill number required to identify the consignment of the goods

41 Supplementary UnitsMandatory when the Tariff requires such unit

Quantities other than net mass which are required as stated under the tariff for taxation and statistical purposes

42Item price

Mandatory The value of the goods for the item being declared

43 V.M Code The Valuation Method used to calculate the value for Customs duties/taxes

44 Licence No Reserved for future use

Valuation Note System The system displays the accounts relative to the item of any additional charges or deductions input from the valuation note segment.

Supporting docs System The codes for documents that must be attached to the declaration due to the type of goods ,values, CPC, tax treatment or other information input at the item being declared

Previous Declaration

System If the goods were previously under a suspense regime, details of the declaration customs reference number will be shown here

Additional Info Allows for further explanation of the goods being declared at this item

45 AdjustmentProhibited

For internal Customs use only

46 Statistical Value Value declared for statistical purposes of those goods in a consignment having the

CUSTOMS & EXCISE BELIZEsame statistical heading.

47 Calculation of Taxes

Customs Value System

A mathematical formula is adopted to calculate the various duties/taxes/fees due on each item of the consignment.

The Customs value in national currency, calculated with the invoice value plus additional charges minus deductions declared at item level

Amount of duties and taxes System The system displays a matrix where various columns provide details of the tax calculations performed by the system based on the declared particulars and according to current legislation.The column type identifies the tax, duty or fee code.The column tax base shows the base value or quantity upon which the duty or tax has been calculated for the tax line in question.

Amount of duties and taxes The column rate displays the actual rate of duty or tax for this tax line, applicable to the goods being declared, as found in the tariff.The column amount shows the computer calculated amount of duty or tax payable or, in case of suspense regime, the duty liability to be guaranteed.The column method of payment (MP) displays the code indicating if it requires payment (value 1 “one”) or needs to be guaranteed (value 0 “zero”).The row item total a XCD shows the total amount to be

CUSTOMS & EXCISE BELIZEpaid or guaranteed for the item being declared. All amounts are calculated and shown in national currency.

48Deferred/Pre-Payment Account

The account code given by Customs for deferred or pre-paid accounts.

49 Identification of a Warehouse A code that will be available only when the declaration uses a CPC code relating to warehousing, to identify a warehouse where a particular consignment has been stored.

Delay time

The duration in days of the period under which the goods will remain in any suspense regime. This field will be available for warehousing, temporary imports, temporary exports and any other suspense regime.

B Accounting Details Shows the mode of payment, the assessment number and receipt number (when paid) of the declaration, as well as the dates when they occurred.It includes the duty liability amount to be covered by a bond, any global fees calculated, and the sum of all amounts to be paid in full.

50 Principal Name and address of a party liable for goods moving under a customs authorization (Transit) and, when applicable, a guarantee.

51 Intended offices of transit and country

Name of the customs office which is responsible for transit formalities en route.

52 Guarantee not Valid for Customs office at which a security or guarantee for the

CUSTOMS & EXCISE BELIZEmovement of goods under a transit procedure is lodged.

53 Office of Destination and Country Name of the customs office at which the goods are released from a Customs transit regime.

54 Place and date System The system will automatically display the declarant’s code and the username of the person who submitted the declaration and the date in which it was accepted by the Customs.

C – Control by Office of Departure

D – Control by Office of Destination

TransitDeclarationProof that a document has been authenticated indicating where appropriate the authentication party. Results of customs controls, name and signature of customs officer and stamp

55 Declarant Signature Mandatory The electronic signature of the importer/declarant

56 Vehicle Chassis Number Mandatory The vehicle identification number embedded on the steel frame of the vehicle