The Customs Control Bill, when enacted, will tighten the paperwork required for imports.
One of the intentions of the bill's authors is preventing consignments from being shipped inland without being adequately risk-assessed and valued.
The bill was recently approved by the cabinet for submission to parliament and has been debated in the National Economic Development and Labour Council.
As things stand, goods are moved from the coastal ports to the City Deep inland port on the basis of a manifest submitted by a carrier.
South African Revenue Service's (SARS) spokesman Adrian Lackay said clearance at the first port of entry, as proposed in the bill, would require a valuation to be made, duties and taxes to be paid and the scrutiny of the Harmonised Commodity and Coding System, which indicates if goods are prohibited or restricted.
Penny Henley, logistics manager at imports company Blue Strata, said the enactment of the bill would result in the closure of City Deep as an inland port.
"City Deep will no longer function as a point of clearance but as a container depot," she said.
She said the new law would reduce the number of imports processed inland.
"What it means is that goods previously cleared at City Deep will now have to be processed in Durban or Cape Town."
The SA Chamber of Commerce and Industry echoed Henley's views. "We believe City Deep will close. It will be one of the unintended consequences of the bill. We also believe that there will be enormous congestion at the Durban port," said Sacci's chief operating officer, Peggy Drodskie.
Henley also warned of job losses. She said that some jobs might become redundant "or require a transfer to other cities" to support the increased demand at those ports.
SARS's Lackay rejected this, saying the changes would not result in a loss of jobs or port congestion. The City Deep inland port is the largest in Africa and the fifth-biggest in the world.
"It is not the intention for City Deep to close. SARS wants to be in a position to focus on high-risk consignments in Durban," Lackay said. "Medium-to-low-risk cargo will be able to move to City Deep for physical inspection," he added.
He said the change in legislation would not affect exports from City Deep.
Source: The Times via I-Net Bridge
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