Import Red Line Brake

All imports at customs were diverted to the ‘Red Line’. While it is stated that imports have come to a standstill throughout Turkey, the industrialist expects an urgent step back from Ankara.

Aysel YUCEL

As of yesterday, the Authorized Economic Operator Certificate (YYS) and all import declarations, without making any other distinctions, started to be routed on the ‘Red Line’, where the goods were physically checked along with their documents.

While Mehmet Altay Yeğin, President of the Association of Authorized Economic Operators, said, “These moves revitalize foreign trade and minimize contact,” Customs Advisor İlhan Bulut said that this practice, which is closely related to every company dealing with customs procedures, significantly eliminates contact with living and non-living things for a foreseeable period of time. Expressing that he will remove it, he said, “It is a radical, radical and useful decision taken during this period.”

Transactions locked on imports

Sector representatives stated that as of yesterday, imports in Turkey have almost come to a standstill. It was stated that the customs were locked when the Ministry of Commerce published the Red Line application, which expresses the physical control of the import of the goods coming to the customs and allowing the import of the goods, to all goods. It was stated that with the reduction of the Red Line rate, which is normally around 12-13 percent in imports in Turkey, to almost 100 percent, no products could be imported, including critical products such as pharmaceuticals, raw materials and food products.

Waiting for 20 containers for 1 day is a thousand dollars!

Mehmet Altay Yegin, President of the Association of Authorized Economic Operators, stated that this practice was an untimely practice and said, “We expect the criterion to be lifted as soon as possible and the system to turn negative.” Customs Consultant İlhan Bulut also stated that the practice caused a great deal of congestion at the customs and said, “We hope that this confusion will be resolved in a short time, it costs a thousand dollars to wait for 20 containers at the port one day.”

Importer’s ear in Ankara

With the verbal instruction from the Ministry of Commerce, the following practices will apply until May 1, 2020: “The inspection officers who control the goods in import will be reduced to the minimum level and shifted to export; Administrative leave will not be given to the personnel who will carry out the operations. Overtime will not be accepted for import. The chemical analysis processes of the goods arriving at the customs will be slowed down. Registered imports will also be converted to Yellow Lines and Red Lines; their new registrations will be automatically placed on the Red Line by the risk analysis unit within the Ministry of Commerce.”

Industrialists shared the concern that, as the factories waiting for raw materials on the production lines will experience serious difficulties if they are not actually able to withdraw from customs until May 4, large amounts of demorage and warehouse fees will be paid for imported products, and that other countries may also apply similar measures to Turkey. It was emphasized that the ears of industrialists and importers are in Ankara for the solution of the problem.

Source : https://www.dunya.com/ekonomi/ithalata-kirmizi-hat-freni-haberi-468862