Minister of Finance Mohamed Maait said the draft regulations for the new Customs Law have been referred to the State Council for review, in preparation for issuance. Maait added, in a statement on Saturday, that the business community's notes on the draft regulations were taken into account. This contributes to stimulating investment, facilitating the movement of internal and external trade, and reducing the cost of the import and export process. The draft regulations offer new advantages for those dealing with the customs system, and clearly define their rights, as the new law aims to integrate, simplify, and automate customs procedures, in a way that contributes to reducing the cost and time of customs clearance. Maait stressed that the draft regulations also ensure the speedy settlement of customs disputes without resorting to the judiciary, activating the role of the Egyptian Customs Authority'sdepartments concerned with arbitration. He pointed out that sufficient guarantees were put in place to protect the sanctity of private residences, the headquarters of companies and bodies that deal with the Customs Authority, when conducting subsequent reviews of customs data according to which the goods were cleared. According to Maait, a precise definition of customs terms has been added in the draft regulations, such as: shipping list extracts, postal consignments, and the ACI system. The regulations also offer more flexible provisions in the application of customs duty relief, among which increasing the value of the goods exempted from customs duty for Egyptians and tourists from EGP 1,500 to EGP 10,000. He added that the draft regulations also confirm other exemptions offered in previous laws. The new law will be applicable in free zones and economic zones of a special nature, without prejudice to any rights, benefits or guarantees given to these systems in accordance with the law.
