Project Purpose
Goods crossing territories in transit towards t=
heir final destination need to be compliant with national legislation of th=
ese transit countries regarding customs laws the protection of the environm=
ent, plant and animal health and animal welfare. Shippers must ensure that =
they obtain all relevant licenses, approvals, certificates for the movement=
of the goods and that the shipments are correctly labeled/marked, document=
ed, and presented to the authorities in the country of departure, destinati=
on, and country (ies) of transit. The necessary arrangements include that t=
he goods/shipments moved under transit are accompanied by documents, includ=
ing the customs documentation (in EU terminology called TAD), and other lic=
enses and certificates related to the shipments and goods. Hauliers (carrie=
rs) must present these documents at the offices of departure, destination a=
nd offices of transit, as well as sometimes also for controls en-route. Up =
until today, in most jurisdictions, these documents need to be presented in=
paper form to the authorities in the office(s) of transit. Initiatives for=
digitization of cross-border trade documents are foremost designed to suit=
the requirements of the authorities in the country of destination and depa=
rture. The legal obligations of authorities in the transit countries seem n=
ot always been taken into consideration. An exception is the customs domain=
where various regional framework are designed or in place to digitize the =
entire transit procedure, or most recent initiatives in the transport secto=
r related to the DAR. The dematerialization of trade documents and paperles=
s exchange of SPS and other licenses, such as CITES or WASTE, between autho=
rities of the importing and exporting country may create a challenge for au=
thorities in transit countries. The hard copy of the respective documents t=
hat must be presented and approved to fulfil legal obligations related to t=
hose documents, is no longer there and the data is not available for author=
ities in transit countries in the required format. For goods in transit, ha=
uliers still must present these documents in the offices of transit and con=
trol points. This White Paper aims to take stock of existing challenges and=
constraints for movement of goods under transit and to identify how they c=
ould be addressed to create a paperless transit environment. It reviews exi=
sting legal and operational practices with regards to presentation and cont=
rol of transit accompanying documents (non-customs), and the use of relevan=
t UN/CEFACT standards (data models, messages, BRS). It will further explore=
options with regards to integration of requirements of authorities in tran=
sit countries and identify possibilities for the private sector to make ele=
ctronic exchanged documents available for authorities of transit countries.=
It will also take stock of existing legal requirements for prior approval =
or movement of goods under transit on SPS ground and explore venues for sim=
plification through principles such as mutual recognition agreements to sat=
isfy the SPS objectives. The aim is to present options for paperless contro=
ls by authorities in transit countries by making digital exchange schemes a=
vailable and, where considered possible and appropriate, simplify relevant =
transit permits and licenses (and related procedures).