Registration of Means of Transport - Visit

Registration of Means of Transport (MoT) visiting (referred to as Visit). A Visit is the registration of the MoT by means of it's name and/or alternative identification such as license plate, train reference, etc. in combination with the Estimated Time of Arrival. In the accounting system this should be identifiable by means of a unique reference.

Registration of Product - Parcel

The Product or Products on board are registered in relation to the Visit by means of Parcels. A Parcel is an administrative reflection of the Product including the following data:

1. The 10 digit Commodity code (Taric). Because both non-Union (i.e. Bonded, T1) and Union (T2) are handled at the Terminal and T1 requires a Commodity code on a 10 digit level (Taric), the requirement is register a Product by means of its Taric code.
2. The Customs status:
   1. T1;
   2. T2 - excise controlled;
   3. T2 - free.
3. The origin in case of T1. Optional in case of T2.
4. The customs value (market value such as Platts) in case of T1. Optional in case of T2.

Registration of compartment(s) by Product - Storage Unit

For the purpose of automation it is needed that the location, where the Product is physically located on a Visit, is registered (Storage Unit). This is mainly needed for record keeping purposes. 

1. When a Visit carries one Product by default there should be one Storage Unit;
2. When a Visit carries two or more different Products there are two or more Storage Units (per product) as this reflects the two different Product are physically separated. Otherwise it cannot be different Products;
3. When a Visit carries the same physical Product, but with different administrative characteristics, such as origin and/or customs status, the amount of Storage Units is determined by the physical segregation of the product.
   1. If the Products are physically segregated by, for example origin or custom status, then there should be a Storage Unit per physically segregated Product;
   2. If the Products with different administrative statuses is physically transported together, there should be one Storage Unit to reflect that.

Registration of Customs documents accompanying the Product - Cargo documents

Products are typically accompanied by documents relevant for Customs purposes. These documents are referred to, as non Customs related documents, Cargo documents. There are two relevant processes in relation to the Cargo documents:

1. Archiving of the documents in a Document Management System whereby the documents are stored in relation to the Product and the Visit providing for an audit trail and complying with retention requirements; and
2. Registration of data coming from these Cargo documents with the Parcel as this data is relevant for the Customs (compliance) process. E.g., when goods are received with a Transit document, the Product should be recorded by means of a Parcel including the Transit document that was accompanying the Product with the related MRN number. The same applied when Products are received with an e-AD where this should be recorded with the Parcel including the related ARC number. The Customs transport type documents are:
   1. The Manifest. This reflects that goods are loaded outside of the Customs territory of the Union or goods had left the Customs territory of the Union. The Manifest is also commonly referred to as the Temporary Storage Declaration (TSD);
   2. A Transit document, where goods are transported under the Transit procedure from one place in the Customs territory of the Union to another;
   3. An e-AD, where T2 goods are transported under the excise movement suspension regime.

Apart from the Customs documents that relate to the Transport of the Product, there are also Customs documents that serve as proof or support of claims made regarding Product. Examples are:

1. Non-Preferential origin:
   1. Certificate of Origin (CoO). This reflects the non-Preferential origin according to the Rules of origin applied by the issuer. Proving Origin is free of form, meaning a CoO is not required. Any proof supporting the origin is acceptable. Therefore, these type of documentation is stored in the Document Management System for archiving purposes, but not necessarily with the parcel as such;
   2. Supplier's declaration. Formal document in which the supplier of a Product makes a claim on its Origin applying the non-Preferential rules of origin. Instead of a Supplier's declaration per Product, such a document can also be issued as a Long Term Supplier's Declaration (LTSD). In any case such as document supports the claim on a non-Preferential origin and a refence should be stored with the Parcel(s) to accommodate a sufficient record keeping and audit trail.
2. Preferential origin, driven by the Trade agreements in place:
   1. EUR.1;
   2. EUR-MED;
   3. Statement on origin (Registered Exporter (REX));
   4. Origin declaration (on commercial document or invoice).
3. Documents showing that the goods come from the free circulation of the customs Union;
   1. Goods can be Released for Free Circulation without customs duties becoming due
      1. A.TR showing the goods come from the free circulation of Turkey as part of the Customs Union;
      2. INF 3 showing the goods come from the free circulation.
   2. Proof that the goods are in free circulation (Proof of Union status)
      1. T2L(F);
      2. e-AD (dual purpose. The e-AD serves as facility to move product under the suspension of excise duties. By this nature it also serves as proof that the goods are in free circulation.

Registration of Measurements 

From an operational point of view there are various recordings of quantities, all with the purpose of establishing the quantity of a Product up until the point where the Terminal takes accountability for a certain quantity. This quantity is booked as such in the record keeping and regarded as stock.

1. Bill of Lading. This document typically mentions the quantities as measured by the consignor. These measurements are normally identical to the quantities mentioned on any accompanying customs documents;
2. Ullage measurement. The measurement report from a surveyor on the ship measurement. This depends on whether or not a ship measurement was done;
3. Outturn report. Measurement report showing the measurements from the measuring equipment of the consignee. This is typically a measurement coming from Tank measurement equipment (radar), flow meters or a manual measurement made by a surveyor.

Dependent on the circumstances one of the above typically serves as a basis for determining the quantity for which the terminal takes on accountability.

Practical examples inbound

Quantities measured as received in relation to the incoming document

The declarant or consignor of the incoming customs documents needs to be informed on the discharge or the procedure. The Parcel received can be split in case of multiple operations. E.g. discharge into multiple tanks or partial discharge and partial ship to ship. Each received quantities must be allocated to the respective Cargo document belonging to the Parcel. Each part of the Parcel needs to be linked to the original Parcel on the MoT. This is done via a so-called Parent/Child relation between the Parcels. Meaning that in case a Product is discharged into two tanks, the Parcel that came in is marled as reference #1 and the two Parcels received in tank are marked as #1.1 and #1.2, showing these belong to Parcel #1 (Parent). The Discharged quantity is the SUM of quantities booked on the Child Parcels.