GENEVA — The U.S. has proposed in global trade talks that customs procedures be streamlined to allow clearance of express shipments within one hour after the submission of the required documents.
The business community views just-in-time delivery as an integral part of the logistics operations of manufacturers with a global reach.
“Ensuring expedited treatment for express shipments is among several key trade facilitation measures that U.S. traders have advised are critical to… global trade,” said a U.S. trade official, who requested anonymity.
Express shipments “are particularly important to small and medium-size enterprises around the world, which often rely on nimbleness in operation to compete,” the trade official said.
The U.S. proposes to provide “separate and expedited customs procedures for express shipments, without limitation as to the maximum weight or customs value of shipment.”
The U.S. text circulated during a session of the trade facilitation segment of the Doha Round talks sponsored by the World Trade Organization also calls for a number of other key steps between operators and customs authorities. These include a single manifest for all goods in an express shipment, preferably though electronic means, and the submission and evaluation of information “necessary for the release of an express shipment” before its arrival in the country of destination.
For shipments valued at $200 or less, it is proposed that no duties or taxes should be assessed and no entry documents required. Customs clearance capabilities vary among the WTO’s 150 members; many poor countries lack the technology to expedite shipments. In anticipation of some of these concerns, the U.S. said there should be differential treatment for poor nations. This would include assistance for training customs officers and creating partnerships with private firms.