There is a new regulation introduced by the Government of India for all shipments arriving into India with effective date of August 1, 2019.
This new regulation is called The Sea Cargo Manifest & Transshipment Regulation (SCMT).
The intent of this regulation is:
1. Advance notice of the arriving / departing cargo
2. Enhance risk assessment & facilitation based on the manifest declarations
3. Complete information about vessel available electronically – including passenger/crew details, ship stores & bottom cargo
4. Track & Trace of every cargo entering/exiting Indian waters
5. Streamlining of the manifest process & consequent amendments
Also, the Sea Arrival Manifest (SAM) is replacing the current Import General Manifest (IGM). SAM is required to be submitted to Indian Customs prior to departure of vessel from the last foreign port before arrival at any Indian port.
Under this new regulation, there are certain additional mandatory details that must be notated on the Bill of Lading which include the following:
1. HS code: 6-Digit HS (Harmonized System) code
2. PAN Number: 10-digit PAN (Permanent Account Number) of notify party (If notify party is from India)
3. Invoice Value: Value of the cargo along with currency (3-digit alphabetical code) as per commercial invoice. (As of now this is optional but it is expected to be made mandatory in the near future)
4. GST (Goods & Services Tax) Number or IEC (Import Export Code) Number of the consignee
5. Full address of the Shipper, Consignee & Notify party including Zip Code
As per the draft amendment of the SCMT guideline published on 12th July 2019, Customs in India has proposed a transition period of 45 days (i.e., up to 15th September 2019) to enable all stakeholders to make necessary changes in their systems/processes.
Non-compliance to the above requirements may lead to cargo not being offloaded from the vessel where the entire risk, cost, and consequence remain on account of merchant.
Since this is a new regulation, we expect clarifications and amendments in the same as time goes by and this may lead to changes which we will inform in due course.
In accordance with this timeline, we will need your valued assistance and support with regard to submitting the required information prior to the cargo cutoff date or at time of booking to ensure we have all information submitted to the carrier to adhere their deadlines.
