Overcoming digital hurdles
The trend towards paperless customs clearance procedures is continuing apace. The service provider Zoll-Fit told the ITJ about the advantages digital processes offer its pilot project in Rheinfelden.
Are you keen on experimentation, Mr Schultz?
I guess you’re alluding to our pilot project in paperless customs clearance [laughs]. In that case – yes, I am. Together with the firms Gerlach and Schenker we’re amongst those enterprises that have been testing, since September 2019, the complete conversion to electronic customs clearance in the Rheinfelden customs office.
What qualifies you as a customs service provider for this pioneering role?
Experience is a part of it. We were leased to celebrate our 20th anniversary as a customs-clearance agency in 2019. We’re active at the border crossings in Riehen, Basel Weil (motorway) and in Rheinfelden. Our youngest baby is at the border crossing in Waldshut, where we’ve been active since 2018. We handle about 7,000 shipments a month for our customers, which include both forwarders and shippers.
How does communication with Swiss customs work?
Very directly. We not only communicate directly with its officials from our headquarters, but we’ve also operated our own Swiss unit since 2006.
Why did you establish a Swiss subsidiary?
This was connected with the opening of the new customs office at the Rheinfelden border crossing. Now this branch office benefits us in field trials.
What are the main advantages of working with digital solutions?
Up to now each type of goods in a partly-loaded truck had to be checked against the commercial invoice and the import list, both at the customs offices as well as at the border. In the event of any complaints, the chauffeur returned the documents with handwritten comments from customs for correction – often with a correspondingly considerable loss of time.
And today?
In this age of e-commerce, complaints are transmitted electronically, the pass remains with the customs officer and is passed on immediately – after our correction has been made remotely and the pop-up is displayed, checked and approved. In a word, the ‘ping-pong’ toing and froing between the various players is significantly shortened.
How do you implement the process technically?
We collect the shipper’s electronic data and the documents in a master dossier, to which the customs authority, using a push function, has direct access, via the e-dec module. All correspondence and subsequent processes, such as tariff complaints to the authorities, are digitalised. Only a few special cases still need to be on paper.
What digital instruments do you use for this?
We use Loggpro.edec software for the entire process, which enables us to provide flexible solutions. If, for example, a single shipment of a mixed load is reported, we can also provide this in a separate sub-dossier, which once again speeds up the process considerably.
To what extent do you think the overall process has been speeded up and improved?
I think that about two thirds of the time previously spent on customs complaints has been eliminated.
This interview with Uwe Schultz was conducted by Christian Doepgen.