Siscomex Trânsito
In Brazil there is a system which allows importers and all other involved entities to register and track air and land transit cargo between bonded warehouses. In this article, we will take a look at the Siscomex Trânsito.
What is Siscomex Trânsito
Siscomex Trânsito is a modality of Siscomex, which is the Integrated System of External Commerce and is a foreign trade system managed by the Receita Federal, which is Portuguese for Federal Revenue. Siscomex Trânsito was developed to control the customs process relating to the transit of cargo between bonded warehouses in Brazil, including the operation of multimodal transportation.
As its name states, it is part of Siscomex and is a computerized system monitored by the Federal Revenue responsible for integrating information on foreign trade operations.
Siscomex Trânsito does not apply to international postal consignments or to the transit of goods that are already subject to customs clearance for the process of exportation or re-exportation.
What is the customs transit regime?
The customs transit regime is a benefit granted by the Federal Revenue to importers and exporters, which allows them to transport their cargo from one bonded warehouse to another more advantageous warehouse via air or road transportation. The authorization for the transit of cargo between bonded warehouse must be issued before the actual transit of the cargo takes place, so there is enough time to complete the correct operation of the process, as well as for the handling of all involved costs.
The various treatments that can be given to the cargo depends on the needs of the company and on the licenses that the company has. These may vary for example from the proximity of the bonded warehouse to the processing plant, to the express needs of specific goods for the production of products or to the special regimes from which the company benefits.
Who has access to Siscomex Trânsito
The following people and entities have access to Siscomex Trânsito:
- Federal Revenue Tax Audits, in order to monitor if there are any inconsistencies in transit operations
- Importers, consignees and their representatives in order to track whether their cargo has been released by Customs
- Bonded warehouse operator
- Cargo consolidators
- National, International, Foreign or Multimodal freight forwarders
It is possible to access Siscomex Trânsito online here.
Main features of Siscomex Trânsito
Here are the main features of Siscomex Trânsito:
- Covers all transit of cargo between units of the Federal Revenue, except for operations that are handled by Siscomex Exportação
- Controls the operation of freight forwarders by means of a national online database
- Controls the provision of the Termo de Responsabilidade para Trânsito Aduaneiro, which is Portuguese for Responsibility Term for Customs Transit
- Controls the provision of assurance for the transit
- Controls the management - when due - of occurrences and the application of penalties
- Allows the issuance of the Declaração de Trânsito Aduaneiro, which is Portuguese for Declaration of Customs Transit, before the arrival of the cargo in customs territory
- Tracks and automatically updates information online about the cargo under the customs transit regime, from the beginning of the operation until its conclusion
Possible infractions tracked by Siscomex Trânsito
Siscomex Trânsito has a rigid system of tracking possible infractions while the cargo is under the customs transit regime. The system will track the following infractions by the importer and by the freight forwarder:
- Changes on the invoice - inclusion of other invoices during transit, changes in the value of the invoice or changes in the description of the cargo
- Rejection of concession of cargo transit between bonded warehouses
- Difference between the value of the cargo declared on the Declaration of Customs Transit and the value declared on the Import Declaration or Simplified Import Declaration
- Change in the approval of transit for controlled goods supervised by regulatory agencies
- Vehicle arrived after the deadline
- Traffic violations
- Partial or total loss of cargo
- Deviation made from the cleared route, without force majeure
- Change of vehicle without authorization by the Federal Revenue
- Arrival of vehicle at a bonded warehouse different to the one stated on the Declaration of Customs Transit