Customs introduces Pre-Arrival Declaration service

Maldives Customs Service has launched the services of Pre-Arrival Declaration and Simplified Declaration, to increase speed and efficiency in the goods clearing process.

The services were inaugurated at a ceremony held on the occasion of International Customs Day 2015, at Customs Building this morning.

Speaking at the ceremony, Commissioner General of Customs Ahmed Zuhoor said that following the introduction of the Pre-Arrival Declaration service, importers would no longer have to wait for the cargo manifest to be submitted to Customs, thereby saving time in the clearing process and reducing costs for businesses.

Similarly, the introduction of a Simplified Declaration for goods brought in for private use would help expedite the service by separating the declarations for goods brought in for business and private purposes, said Zuhoor.

He added that Maldives Customs’ aim was to process all declarations within 3 hours, or at most 24 hours, from the time of submission.

In addition to the inauguration of the two services, certificates were also presented at the ceremony to participants of Customs Workers Course and recipients of Customs Merit Certificate, by Minister of Tourism Ahmed Adeeb.