FLASH INFO MONDE / GEOPOST EXPRESS NETWORK
01/10/2008

Fin du Ramadan
Les journées du 1er, 2 et 3 octobre seront fériées dans de nombreux pays marquant ainsi la fin du Ramadan.

Feast of Ramadhan
October 1 2 and 3 have been declared as regular holiday in several countries in observance and celebration of the end of Ramadan

Grèce - grève des douanes
La grève des douanes ayant débuté le 22.09, s'est terminée lundi 29.09.

Greece - Customs Strike
The Greek Customs strike, that started the 22nd of Sept, ended the 29 of sept.

- ON GOING DISRUPTIONS –

New York City - United Nations General Assembly
Please be advise that there are several street closures in the Manhattan area, that no deliveries will be made to the United Nations, and that further delivery delays are to be expected in New York City, due to the United Nations General Assembly being held at this time until October 3rd, 2008.

L'Assemblée générale de Nations Unies - New York City
En raison de L'Assemblée générale de Nations Unies qui se tient à New York, Aucune livraison ne sera effectuée à l'ONU: plusieurs rues ont été fermées dans Manhattan et des retards de livraison sont à prévoir dans la ville jusqu’au 3 octobre

Low Value shipments - Russian
Please be informed that, in accordance with Russian Customs legislation, it's allowed to receive only 1 Low Value shipment for 1 cnee, during 1 week (LV shipment: up to 5000 RUB invoice value plus transportation cost).

If two and more shipments are received during 1 week by one cnee, only 1 shipment will be cleared as LV (without producing customs paper works and payment of customs duties), all other shipments will come under full customs clearance procedure with all customs duties and VAT to be paid as for High Value shipment.

Please be sure that you don't split High Value shipment into several Low value consignments. Please do not split 1 High Value shipment into several Low Value - it will not speed up customs clearance, but will lead to delays in delivery.

Envoi Low Value – Russie
Selon la réglementation douanière Russe, pour les envois « Low Value » seul 1 envoi peut être reçu pour un même destinataire au cours d’une semaine (Les envois Low Value = jusqu’a 5000 RUB de valeur, plus le coût de transport).

Si 2 envois ou plus sont reçus au cours de cette période et pour un même destinataire alors seul 1 des envois sera dédouané comme LV et toutes les procédures classiques de dédouanement seront appliquées pour tous les autres envois (droites de douane, TVA, etc…)

Veuillez vous assurer que les envois HV (High Value) ne soient pas divisés en plusieurs envois LV.

La division d’un envoi classé HV en plusieurs LV n'accélérera pas le dédouanement, et risque de provoquer des retards lors de la livraison

VIETNAM CUSTOMS REGULATIONS
Communication equipment such as telephones (both mobile and land), all equipment permitting the transmission of information (optical fibres, cables, etc) and radio equipment are subjected to particularly strict regulations, requiring for importation into Vietnam the agreement of the Ministry for Information and Communication.

RÈGLES DOUANIERES AU VIETNAM
Les équipements de téléphonie mobile et fixe, les équipements qui permettent la transmission d’information (fibres optique, câbles, etc.) et les équipements de radio sont soumis à une réglementation particulièrement stricte nécessitant pour l’importation au Vietnam l’accord du Ministère de l’Information et de la Communication.

State of Emergency Announced in Bangkok, Thailand
The Prime Minister of Thailand has announced a state of emergency in Bangkok following clashes between the pro and anti-government supporters.

Delivery delays are to be expected.

État d'urgence annoncé à Bangkok, Thaïlande
Le premier ministre de la Thaïlande a annoncé un état d'urgence à Bangkok en raison de récentes émeutes anti-gouvernementales.

Des retards de livraison sont à prévoir.

Armenia
As a result of the conflict between Russia and Georgia, there are some constraints with fuel supplies the air cargo capacity is reduced.

Delivery delays are to be expected and it is requested that you hold escalations.

Arménie
En raison du conflit entre la Russie et la Géorgie, et de ses impacts en termes de restrictions de fuel, la capacité aérienne vers l’Arménie est réduite.

Des retards à la livraison sont à prévoir. Merci de limiter au maximum vos enquêtes SAV.

Operations shutdown in Jammu (India)
Due to the ongoing political unrest in the state of Jammu and Kashmir since week 31 the air and road network to Jammu has been blocked by protestors. As a result of this all air consignments have been held back in Ambala Hub.

Delivery delays in Jammu are to be expected until the situation stabilizes.

Updated will provide on any further developments.

Arrêt des opérations à Jammu (Inde)
En raison de la tension politique continue dans l'état de Jammu et au Cachemire depuis début août les réseaux routiers et aériens en direction de Jammu ont été bloqués par des manifestants. Suite à ces blocages les envois aériens sont retenus dans le hub d'Ambala.

Des retards à la livraison sont à prévoir jusqu'à ce que la situation se stabilise.

Nous vous tiendrons informés de l’évolution de ces événements.

Rules of Origin pertaining to ZA
With immediate affect, all consignments shipped from the EU region to ZA must have the Original Commercial Invoices attached to them. In cases where the value exceeds EUR 6000 the Original Commercial Invoices has to be accompanied with the Original EUR 1 form. It is also important to note that no pre-clearance can be done where and when an importer insists on the most favourite rate of duty, in terms of the ROO - EUR1/ Protocol 1.

In the event that these requirements are not adhered to, the general rate of duty will be declarable to Customs.

Customs Requirements - Uruguay
Please be advised that all non-document shipments sent to Uruguay must always have the Commercial Invoice

1. The information of the consignment must be the exactly as the described on the invoice and in data system.

2. The information of the consignment must be specific and detailed.

Shipments not complying with the above requirements will not be cleared until requirements are met. It is hereby requested that you comply with the above requirements in order to avoid delays in the clearance process.

New restrictions - Mexico
Please be informed of the new restrictions in Mexico:

It is therefore restricted to send products in powder, paste or liquid form or pharmaceutical products such as tablets, pills, capsules, granules, coated pills and all type of products which requires a physical or chemical analysis to establish its composition, nature , origin and the necessary characteristics to determine its classification regardless of the quantity and declared value.

As of August 2008 all shipments with contents mentioned as above will require a broker to release it.

SENDING WATCHES INTO SAUDI ARABIA
Please Note that shipments that are destined to Saudi Arabia and Contains watches should be accompanied by a certificate of origin, otherwise the shipment can not be customs cleared.

CUSTOMS REGULATIONS IN MALAYSIA
Starting 1st of July, for any shipment detained at the Malaysian customs, a registration of Business Certification (ROB) or Registration of Companies Certification (ROC) should be presented before the shipment can be cleared. This includes Low and High value shipments that are detained, and there will be a 24-36 hours delay in the clearance depending on how fast the consignee can provide the (ROB) or (ROC). The commodities below are considered unacceptable unless the shipper confirms with the consignee that they have the required permit to import them: Medicine Cosmetics DVDs/CDs

SHIPMENTS INTO GAZA STRIP (PALESTINE)
Please note that non-document shipments are still NOT allowed into Gaza Strip, as for document shipments, the weight of the shipment should not exceed 7 – 10 Kgs in order to have smooth clearance and delivery, otherwise they can huge delays and maybe confiscated.

LEBANON - DELAYS
Please be advise of delivery delays in the city of Beirut due to the Lebanese Government’s decree prohibiting the entry of motorcycles / two wheelers into Beirut city until further notice. As a result of this decree, our agent are executing deliveries by cars, therefore taking more time to finish their rounds.

ANGOLA
Please note that as of April Angola is no longer suspended, however only the Capital city Luanda is services for the moment. Please be advised the all shipments to other cities are made available in Luanda.

INDIA – STRIKES
Please be informed that due to diesel and petrol scarcity in Chennai all transporters are announced strike from 01/07/08 midnight

CHINA
Introduction The forthcoming Olympic Games in China have led the Chinese authorities to apply increasingly restrictive controls on aviation security and customs clearance. The industry is encountering a tightening control. This affects not only the Beijing (PEK) area, but also other parts of the country, including clearance points in Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Hong Kong.

Current developments
1. Customs have greatly intensified inspections and control across the country over the following shipment contents
- Dangerous cargoes
- Non-dangerous chemical cargoes
- Any cargoes in the form of liquid and powder
- Food (in the forms of liquid and powder)
As a result and until further notice, TNT China has now suspended all shipments containing these goods, except existing customers’ shipments that must be processed under formal clearance, not under express EDI clearance...
2. Beijing customs do a 100% inspection on all imports. This leads to unavoidable delays on all inbound clearance through Beijing gateway.
3. China Post (which carries out deliveries in the areas outside TNT’s own service area) had announced to reject taking consignments that are in liquid form.
4. Shanghai Pudong (PVG) customs now require 100% inspections on all imports from Germany until further notice, and chance to include more origin countries is high.
5. Consignments carrying electronic products like computer notebooks must be opened and inspected to see if the battery contents mapped with what is declared on the approved chemical certificate legally required for transportation, and battery is actually classified under dangerous goods.
6. More trucks than usual are being held by customs in/out the Huanggang border between Shenzhen (SZX) and Hong Kong. As most shipments out of southern China (including Guangzhou (CAN) and Zhuhai (ZUH)) are exported through Hong Kong, this affects transit times.

Recommendations
TNT China is working with authorities to minimize all possible impact, but TNT countries and customers are requested for their full cooperation:
1. Always provide complete contact details (especially receiving parties) with phone, fax or even email details.
2. Avoid the use of vague product descriptions like sample, spares, merchandise etc.
3. Re-check if the shipment declared value is sensible when comparing to the shipment weight.
4. Declare the shipment value in either Euro currency or US dollars.
5. Be prepared to experience Custom-hold for shipments carrying powder and liquid.
6. Tender your export shipments to China as early as you can.