Sars accreditation plans take shape

SA Revenue Service has revealed plans

to augment accreditation and roll out

a full Authorised Economic Operator

Programme with mutual recognition of

status with its leading trading partners.

That’s the word from chief officer

Customs and Excise, Jed Michaletos,

who told FTW that in December Sars

commissioner Tom

Moyane had entered

into cooperation

discussions on the path

to mutual recognition

with both China and

USA Customs border

patrol. “Furthermore,

Sars has been working

with Sacu and the

WCO to provide

capacity building

to create preferred

trader (PT) programmes in each of the

BLNS (Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia

and Swaziland) countries. We have

also drafted Sacu regional structures

to enable mutual recognition of PT

across the Sacu region that will support

exporters with PT status with reciprocal

benefits in the future,” he said.

Preferred Trader status is currently

open only to importers and exporters.

At the moment, there is no accreditation

of the customs agent or customs

operators.

“Over the past couple of years, Sars

has been working with importers and

exporters to help verify compliance with

the PT criteria and address any errors

or gaps where necessary

to help get the client’s

declarations right first

time, every time,” said

Michaletos.

“Sars has not yet

awarded status to

aspirant preferred

traders, but we

will formally

communicate

our plans for the

implementation of

accreditation in due course. PT

status earned within the current

Act will be transferred into the new

Customs Act regime, when it is

implemented,” he added.

Interested importers and

exporters can apply using the

DA186 form, available on the Sars

website (www.sars.gov.za).

INSERT

Preferred Trader

status is currently

open only to

importers and

exporters.