The General Authority of Customs (GAC) has announced that 309,016 declarations were released in March. The GAC is also working on converting the manual auction process to electronic, which would be the first in the region, according to its monthly newsletter. The Authority stated that 282,775 of these declarations were completed by the air cargo customs, while the maritime customs did 25,464. Also, 98 percent of customs declarations were released in an hour.
The March numbers recorded an increase in declarations compared to January and February, which stood at 287,441 and 254,836, respectively. The GAC recorded a seizure of 7252 pieces of Lyrica which was the largest catch in March, while a total of 254 seizure reports were recorded. India and China retained their spot again as the top exporting and importing countries in March, respectively. The Environmental Protection Reserves and Wildlife Department remained the Best Government Agency in ‘time of release’ at an average release time of two hours. In ensuring a smooth and hitch-free process, the GAC also maintained a 98 percent release time per hour. The Authority transferred 26,241 declarations to other government agencies.
Meanwhile, Customs Adviser in the Office of the GAC Chairman and head of the Auction Committee Hassan Ali Al Nuaimi confirmed that the GAC is working on converting the manual auction process to electronic, which would be the first in the region. The Authority, in cooperation with the Ministry of Transportation and Communications’ TASMU initiative, is working on facilitating the electronic process. Al Nuaimi stated that the GAC is coordinating with several major companies like Microsoft to collect information on establishing an electronic auction system.
According to Al Nuaimi, the Authority provides 90 days for the importers to clear the goods procedures. If the goods are not received within this period stipulated by the law, they become the State’s property. They are prepared and displayed within specific lists for sale by auction and transferred to the state treasury. He added that bidders must obtain a license to release the registration of the goods bought from the auction by the competent authorities. After that, the bidder can enter these goods into the country, but if they cannot obtain permission, the goods can be exported to another country. Al Nuaimi stressed that goods would not be permitted entry into Qatar until the competent registration authorities such as the Ministry of Interior, the Ministry of Public Health, the Ministry of Municipality and Environment, and others permit approval through the Harmonized System (HS Code).
