Customs specialists help speed up clearances

Clearing goods through Zimbabwean customs is due to become more predictable and manageable following a decision by the revenue authorities to split the customs and taxation functions and staff. An earlier decision to use staff across both departments led to unnecessary delays and some confusion, according to Juren Mtemeli, managing director of Cilo Freight. The company is a customs consultant for exporters and importers doing business in and through Zimbabwe. Staffed by former customs officers, it has an in-depth understanding of Zimbabwean customs rules and procedures. It also provides customs clearing, freight forwarding, in-bond cargo transit and warehousing. “We can often get freight cleared faster than anyone else because we know the regulations so well, and also who to talk to in order to obtain a decision or ruling,” he says. Being compliant with the regulations has sometimes not been enough because the clearing officer on the day may be trained in taxation rather than revenue collection. On the same day a tax consultant would be experiencing the same frustrations when dealing with a customs officer who had not been trained in tax law. Fortunately, the revenue department realised that a mistake had been made in attempting to get its staff to multi-task across disciplines, and the professional customs officer is back behind the desk. This brings its own challenges for clearing agents because perusal of the documentation will be more rigorous and well informed – which is good news for companies such as Cilo, which has invested in having the right skills and staff. “Professionalism will return. This will be good for revenue collection because loopholes will be plugged,” he says. Imports into Zimbabwe are becoming more complex due to the greater use of groupage. “Because of limited budgets importers are having to rely on middle agents in South Africa rather than importing directly from China. This raises the costs for Zimbabwean consumers,” he says. Cilo can help control some of the costs through its partnership with BP Freight in Johannesburg, which provides warehousing and packing services.