Getting accustomed to Jamaica Customs
ARECENT venture I’ve embarked on as an entrepreneur is Sashi’s Treats, a company that manufactures all-natural pet treats using majority local ingredients. The company was started in our kitchen by my wife, Sasha Dennis, a veterinarian with over a decade of experience. Growing demand has recently pushed us to get a location and commercial machinery.
We knew this was going to be a capital-intensive process and so we sought to implement any and all measures to limit costs. One such measure we are aware of is to become a registered manufacturer with the Ministry of Industry (MICAF) and Jamaica Customs Agency (JCA).
According to MICAF’s website, the designation of a company as a manufacturer in Jamaica is based on the provisions of the Customs Tariff (Revision) (Amendment) Resolution 2013.
Companies designated as manufacturers can benefit from Productive Input Relief (PIR), specifically: Duty-free importation GCT-deferral on imported items 50 per cent discount on the Customs Administrative Fee (CAF)
The information on MICAF’s website also outlines the steps to manufacturing status:
1. Write to MICAF, to the attention of the Industry Division. The Industry Division undertakes an assessment of the application based on information submitted, and a site visit of the oper-ations. Further to this technical review,
MICAF makes a referral to the commissioner of customs.
2. Upon receipt of MICAF’s referral, the JCA undertakes its own verification assessment, including a joint site visit (MICAF/JCA) after which a decision is taken.
3. The final determination regarding the designation of manufacturing status to a company is made by the commissioner of customs.
After following the above steps, you can imagine our delight when in a matter of weeks we received our PIR confirmation letter; signed and sealed by the senior director of Central Operations for Commissioner.
Our delight would, however, be short-lived.
We recently imported a dehydrator. We instructed our custom broker to clear it, with a copy of our PIR confirmation letter in hand. He would return with a message from JCA, that a written directive was required from MICAF to receive any product input relief. My response was, “surely this is a new customs officer unfamiliar with the process…”, because the Customs Tariff (Revision) (Amendment) Resolution 2013 indicates that Products Input Relief (PIR) is the purview of the Commissioner of Customs, as is the decision to designate manufacturing status to a company.
Days passed and I managed to overcome this hurdle, then came another hurdle immediately after. JCA said they required a PIR code to apply the incentive.
Deep breath.
“Where am I to get this PIR code?” I asked.
To which my broker replied, “from MICAF.”
Deeper breath.
I called the JCA’s incentive branch and explained the situation to the incentives officer. Her response was that the PIR confirmation letter was all that was needed, nothing more. At my request, she intervened and it seemed all was now well.
Except it wasn’t.
I arrived at JCA to pick up. I was handed an invoice which had all charges in full. I was told the PIR code was no longer the issue. I now needed an
Additional National Code (ANC) that would allow for the PIR benefits to be applied.
After further “negotiating” with JCA, I was informed that they had used an ANC that would only allow for duty import reduction to five per cent; all other charges would be applied in full.
It had been over two weeks, and my business was suffering so I begrudgingly gave in.
When I returned to pick up, I was charged for additional days of storage. I had to go to multiple windows and checkpoints to collect my product, contended with the forklifts around the warehouse, and picked up a nail in my tyre on their site.
WHAT I WOULD LIKE TO SEE
■ Start with consistency from policy through to those implementing elements of the policy. If the JCA officers I dealt with were familiar with the Customs Tariff (Revision) (Amendment) Resolution 2013, they could have avoided Sashi’s Treats much frustration and loss.
■ If the JCA officers were at any time in doubt or challenged on an incentives-based issue, why not immediately consult with their incentives branch? This was a clear disconnect that also cost us.
■ I’m not a logistics expert, but is it really that difficult to have one point to do all your business? Think of the administrative savings on the Government’s end, and the reduced time, cost and overall inconvenience for JCA customers.
■ In addition to the above, a safer and more efficient system and process in place that will allow customers to collect and leave JCA with their product in tow.
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