Container Freight Station of M/s. Gateway Distriparks (Kerala) Ltd, Vallarpadam, Cochin - procedure to be followed in respect of import, export and transshipment cargo and the movement of containers into and out of the Container Freight Station - reg. - Customs - 08/ 2012

OFFICE OF THE COMMISSONER OF CUSTOMS CUSTOMS HOUSE: COCHIN-682009 TRADE FACILITY No. 08/ 2012 Sub:- Container Freight Station of M/s. Gateway Distriparks (Kerala) Ltd, Vallarpadam, Cochin - procedure to be followed in respect of import, export and transshipment cargo and the movement of containers into and out of the Container Freight Station - reg. ----------------------------------------- Attention of all Importers/Exporters/CHAs/Steamer Agents/Public is invited to this Custom House Notification No.03/2012 dated 18.04.2012 notifying the limits and boundaries of the premises of M/s. Gateway Distriparks (Kerala) Ltd., Vallarpadam, Cochin as Customs area for setting up of a Container Freight Station (CFS) and Notification No. 04/2012 dated 19/04/2012 appointing M/s. Gateway Distriparks (Kerala) Ltd., hereinafter known as GDKL‟, as Custodian of import / export cargo. The working hours of the GDKL CFS shall be from 10 am to 5 pm every working day and they shall observe all the Central Government holidays and Sundays as is followed by this Custom House. All instructions governing the functioning of a CFS shall be read along with the existing instructions, as applicable, issued by the department under various provisions of Customs Act / Rules / Regulations / Circulars etc. and these are meant to supplement the existing instructions and not to substitute them. The procedures to be followed for import, export and movement of containers into and out of the GDKL CFS are as follows:- IMPORT 1. The custodian code of GDKL CFS is INCOK1GDL1. 2. At present GDKL CFS is authorized to deal with FCL containers only. The containers shall be stored only at the designated places inside GDKL CFS which shall be distinctly separated from export/empty containers. The facility for clearance of LCL cargo shall be given only after completion of permanent storage facilities and the date shall be announced later. 3. The GDKL CFS operator has executed Bond for ₹ 50 lakhs with Bank Guarantee for ₹ 15 lakhs drawn on HDFC Bank Ltd., Palarivattom Branch. The Supdt (Prev.)/Appraiser shall, at the end of every month, verify the sufficiency of the Bond and Bank Guarantee based on the quantum of cargo stored at that point of time and if any extra amount of Bond / B.G. is required, the same shall be brought to the notice of Assistant/Deputy Commissioner of Customs (Import Bond) and Assistant/Deputy Commissioner of Customs (Docks / CFS) immediately. 4. For movement of imported goods to the GDKL CFS from ICTT, Vallarpadom or any other notified customs area, permission in triplicate form /transshipment permission from the authorized officer shall be obtained by the applicant as per the existing procedure. No import cargo shall be allowed to enter GDKL CFS without a valid permit in triplicate form / transshipment permit. The transhipment permission shall be serially numbered by the GDKL CFS operator and shall also contain Space Availability Certificate . The ICTT officers and the Container Cell Officers shall monitor the movement of the containers to the GDKL CFS as per the existing procedure. The proper officer may deny the movement / transshipment permission to any class or type of goods keeping in view the facilities required for storing/handling such kind of goods at GDKL CFS or due to lack of space for storing such kind of goods, in public interest. 5. The gate officer in ICTT, in addition to other documents, shall verify the container number and seal number as per the triplicate/transshipment permit and endorse the out-time at the gate for each container. The applicant for movement shall ensure that the containers reach the GDKL CFS within 30 minutes of the out-time from ICTT gate. On reaching the GDKL CFS, they shall immediately report to the Supdt. /Appraiser of the GDKL CFS who shall verify whether the seal are intact and also the time taken for movement from ICTT to GDKL CFS is in order. In case of any seal tampering, the same shall immediately be recorded in writing, in the presence of the applicant and GDKL CFS representative, and the same shall be reported to the Assistant / Deputy Commissioner (Docks / CFS) for further necessary action. The container shall be sealed with a customs bottle seal during the interim period. 6. In case the transit time is more than 30 minutes, an explanation shall be obtained from the applicant for the delay and the same shall be put up to the Assistant / Deputy Commissioner (Docks / CFS), who shall verify and condone the delay if the reasons given therein are bonafide. 7. The Supdt. /Appraiser posted at GDKL CFS shall keep a record of allcontainers received and allowed out of charge. They shall forward necessary landing report to the officers at ICTT to reconcile and close the entries. They shall also get a weekly statement of containers permitted for transshipment to the GDKL CFS from the Customs Officers at ICTT and tally with the register maintained at the GDKL CFS to ensure that all containers released from the ICTT are received at the GDKL CFS. At the end of every month, a physical verification of containers with book balance shall be made and report to this extent shall be sent to Assistant / Deputy Commissioner (Preventive) with a copy to Assistant / Deputy Commissioner (Docks / CFS). 8. At the GDKL CFS, the CFS operator shall maintain a detailed register indicating the details of movement/transshipment permits issued, date of issue and receipt of the containers with all the relevant particulars relating to the consignments like date and time of receipt, container number, IGM number, line number, size of the container, name of the importer etc. The GDKL CFS operator shall also maintain complete account of the receipt, destuffing, clearing of import goods and removal of empty containers. They shall provide the register for customs scrutiny once in a week and at any time on demand. They shall also give a weekly statement to the Assistant / Deputy Commissioner of Customs (Docks / CFS) indicating the total number of containers received, the number of containers cleared and the balance pending. A physical verification shall also be conducted every week by the Supdt. / Appraiser and report to be submitted to Assistant / Deputy Commissioner (Docks/CFS) to that extent. 9. As far as LCL cargo is concerned, the GDKL CFS operator shall apply to the Supdt. / Appraiser for de-stuffing permission. The de-stuffing shall be done under the direct supervision of Supdt./Appraiser and the cargo shall be stored in the designated place for LCL import cargo in the shed. An account of LCL cargo shall be maintained separately both by the custodian and the Supdt. /Appraiser. This record shall also indicate the container number in which the cargo was brought, IGM number, Line number, date of destuffing, condition of packages, shortage/excess etc. At the time of destuffing if there is any discrepancy between the B/L and the cargo, the same shall be reported to Assistant Commissioner / Deputy Commissioner (Docks / CFS) for necessary action. The cargo pertaining to individual line of an IGM shall be stored at one place and the identity of the place (like bay / row number) shall be mentioned in the register. The Supdt. may disallow de-stuffing of goods of any particular type or class in public interest. 10. It shall be ensured that any cargo seized/ detained by investigating agencies like SIIB/DRI/NCB is stored separately stored from the normal cargo. Similarly the valuable/ hazardous cargo also shall be segregated and stored separately. No rent/ handling charges shall be charged by the custodian for the storage and safe custody of detained / seized cargo from the seizing authorities. 11. The Examining Officer/ Preventive Officer / Appraiser / Supdt. posted at the GDKL CFS shall examine the cargo as and when the relevant bills of entry are presented by the importers / Custom House Agents and follow the existing procedure before giving out of charge . For LCL cargo, the bill of entry shall be initially presented to the GDKL CFS manager who shall make stacking endorsement indicating the location of the cargo and number of packages. The import cargo shall not be taken out of CFS without the out of charge by the proper officer of Customs. The delivery of the out of charge cargo shall be done under the supervision of Supdt./Preventive Officer. In case of any doubt regarding the identity of goods examined, the Preventive Officer shall consult the officers who have examined the goods before giving delivery. 12. If the goods are not cleared from the GDKL CFS within 30 days of the date of their landing at ICTT, the custodian shall initiate action as per the provisions of Section 48 of the Customs Act, 1962 . The GDKL CFS operator shall make necessary arrangements for conducting auction of unclaimed/uncleared goods. In case of confiscated goods, the same shall be inventorized, taken over and auctioned by the Custom House. 13. After out of charge is given by the proper officer for a bill of entry, the GDKL CFS operator shall permit clearance of the goods out of the CFS. The GDKL CFS operator shall maintain a copy of out of charge memorandum as part of his records and the same shall be produced as and when demanded by Customs. 14. The empty containers that are required to be taken out of the GDKL CFS after de-stuffing, shall also be covered by a gate pass, issued by the GDKL CFS operator which shall be countersigned by the Supdt./Appraiser of Customs in charge of GDKL CFS. The gate pass issued by the GDKL CFS operator for removal of the empty containers shall contain the serial number and other details of the containers. The Preventive Officer at the gate shall physically check the empty containers so as to ensure that no goods are removed unauthorisedly. He shall collect the gate pass and enter the particulars in the register maintained for this purpose. 15. The present procedure of filing and processing of bills of entry and payment of duty at the notified Bank/Custom House shall be followed in the case of goods cleared from GDKL CFS also. 16. Any deviation in the above procedure shall be brought to the notice of higher authorities immediately. The staff posted at the GDKL CFS shall be under the direct control of the Assistant/Deputy Commissioner (Docks/CFS). EXPORTS Exporters who desire to avail the facility of examination and container loading / stuffing of export cargo into the containers at the GDKL CFS are allowed to do so, subject to observance of applicable procedures and conditions applicable to examination and stuffing of export goods outside port premises as detailed below:- 1. The custodian shall allow export cargo into the GDKL CFS only when the exporter produces Check list and other declarations, viz, Invoice, Packing list, AR-4, Drawback/DEEC declarations, SDF and other documents as per Shipping Bill (Electronic declaration) Regulations, 2011 filed by the Exporter in the Service Centre. No export cargo shall be allowed into GDKL CFS without the above documents. The GDKL CFS operator shall receive the export goods and properly stacks the goods for easy identification and examination of goods. 2. Exporters shall get the Shipping Bills for export goods assessed at the Custom House as usual. 3. The Shipping Bills shall initially be presented to the GDKL CFS Manager for making stacking endorsement indicating the location and number of packages. The Shipping Bill shall be presented to the Appraiser/Superintendent (Prev.)/Examiner/Preventive Officer posted at the GDKL CFS for examination and subsequent action. The exporter/agent shall be required to register their Shipping Bills with the Examiner/Preventive officer/Appraiser/Superintendent (Prev.). in the EDI System as per the existing procedure. In case of any manual Shipping Bills, the same shall be registered with Appraiser/Superintendent (Prev.) at the GDKL CFS. A register shall be maintained in the GDKL CFS for registering the Shipping Bills. 4. The export cargo for which Let Export Order (LEO) is given shall be stored separately from other export cargo, if it is not planned for immediate stuffing. Shifting of such cargo shall be under the supervision of Preventive Officer and the same shall be endorsed in the relevant registers. Once the Let Export Order is given for a consignment, stuffing shall be done in the presence of Preventive Officer who shall also seal the export container with the customs bottle seal and endorse on the Shipping Bill. The stuffed container shall then be allowed to be moved to ICTT. The Shipping Bills shall be suitably endorsed and Let Export Order given on the shipping bills before the containers leave the GDKL CFS. The sealed containers, Shipping Bills and the gate pass shall be verified by the Preventive Officer at the gate of GDKL CFS. The sealed containers containing the examined cargo shall then be allowed to move out to ICTT for shipment. The Appaiser/Superintendent (Prev.) shall maintain record of all export containers separately with seal numbers. 5. For the purpose of movement of loaded containers from the GDKL CFS to ICTT, the GDKL CFS operator shall issue gate passes which shall be countersigned by the Appraiser/Superintendent (Prev.). This shall contain particulars like Shipping Bill number, Containers number, Seal number and Vehicle / Trailer numbers etc. The Preventive Officer at the GDKL CFS gate shall endorse the out-time of the containers from the GDKL CFS. All containers shall reach ICTT gate within 30 minutes of out-time of the GDKL CFS. In case of any delay, the same shall be brought to the notice of the Assistant / Deputy Commissioner (Docks/CFS) by the Gate Officer/Supdt. of Customs at ICTT who shall condone the delay if the reasons given therein are bonafide. In case of seal tampering, the goods shall be brought back to GDKL CFS after putting customs bottle seal by the Gate Officer of Customs at ICTT with the permission of Assistant / Dy. Commissioner (Docks / CFS). 6. On receipt of the sealed containers at ICTT, the containers shall be allowed to be exported under Customs supervision after verification of the seals without any further examination. However, Custom House reserves its right for further examination. The existing procedure for allow loading‟ and subsequent procedures shall continue for the containers from the GDKL CFS also. 7. The Appraiser/Superintendent (Prev.) in charge of GDKL CFS shall send a weekly statement of containers allowed for export from the GDKL CFS to the Container Cell at Docks. The Container Cell shall tally these details with gate records and preserve such records. In case of any discrepancy, the same shall be immediately reported to Assistant/Deputy Commissioner (Docks/CFS) for further necessary action. 8. If for some reasons, the goods stuffed into containers at the GDKL CFS and brought for export to the ICTT and are not exported and if the exporters are intending to take them back to town, such cargo shall be allowed to be removed to town only with the permission of the Assistant / Dy. Commissioner (Docks / CFS) after observing due formalities connected therewith. If removal to town of export cargo is sought before LEO, the same shall be allowed by Assistant / Dy. Commissioner (Docks / CFS) after sample examination of the cargo and satisfying about the identity of the cargo and ruling out any attempt for violation of provisions of Customs Act. 9. The Steamer Agents who desire to take empty containers inside GDKL CFS for stuffing export cargo shall get the permission from the Appraiser/Superintendent (Prev.) in charge of GDKL CFS. The Steamer Agents shall produce the permission letter along with the containers to the Preventive officer at the gate of the GDKL CFS. Preventive officer shall check the empty containers and allow the same to be taken inside the GDKL CFS. The officer shall make necessary entries in the register maintained for this purpose and retain and preserve the permission letters for records. 10. The facility of examination and stuffing of export cargo at the GDKL CFS shall also be utilized for goods to be exported through other ports. In such cases, the Appraiser / Superintendent of Customs (Prev) / Examiner / Preventive officer shall examine the goods with reference to the details given in the invoices and after sealing, the invoices shall be suitably endorsed. Shipping Bills shall have to be filed at the Port of shipment on the basis of the certified invoices and gate pass issued from the GDKL CFS. The exporter shall have to follow all other provisions related to transshipment/consolidation. General procedures 1. The Appraiser/Superintendent (Prev.) looking after the export / import as the case may be, shall be responsible for all reports and statements concerning GDKL CFS. 2. The facility for storage and export of LCL cargo shall be given after completion of permanent storage facilities. 3. Since the warehousing facilities are not completed in full, space availability certificate may be obtained / issued for the number of containers that can be handled at a time considering the space constraints. This procedure shall continue till such time the warehousing facilities are completed in full. 4. The instructions contained in CBEC Circular No. 37/2011 dated 18th August, 2011 for the installation of weigh bridges is relaxed temporarily based on the letter of undertaking received from M/s DP World permitting M/s Gateway Distriparks (Kerala) Ltd. to use their weigh bridge till the completion and erection of their own weigh bridge. This relaxation is given under the powers vested on Commissioner of Customs vide Regulation 7 of the Handling of Cargo in Customs Areas Regulations, 2009. 5. This Trade Facility shall come in to force with effect from 07.05.2012 and shall remain in force until further orders. It shall be reviewed once all the facilities like warehousing and erection of weigh-bridge are completed in GDKL CFS. (VIJAY KALSI) COMMISSIONER F.No.S25/260/2010 I B Cus. 03.05.2012