How to Clear a Car at the Tema Port
Getting a confirmation from your shipping agency that your car is arriving anytime soon is one of the happiest moment that everyone experiences when they ship car (s) from abroad.
But the fact that your car is arriving at the port is not a guarantee that you will get your car easily. You can ship your car, but if you don’t know how to clear your car from the port, it’s a total waste of time and money.
Clearing your car from the port is one of the major problems many people face when they import car (s) from abroad.
Due that we are writing this article to guide you through the process of clearing your car from the port.
The process of clearing your car from the port is a very tedious process but after following this article, you’re going to find it easier because this article is going to cover all the aspects of the clearing your car from the port.
How to Clear A Car at the Tema Port
The clearing of the car from the Tema port involves three (3) major stages and these are:
- Pre-vessel arrival
- Post-vessel arrival and
- Final clearance and delivery.
Under each stage, there’re some processes that need to be followed and now let’s take each stage one after the other and discuss the processes under each stage.
Pre-vessel arrival
The pre-vessel arrival is the stage where you are allowed to begin the process of clearing your car even before the car actually arrives at the port.
This makes shipment to be processed faster when the car arrives at the Tema Port.
Also under this stage, there are some certain processes and these are:
Submit car clearance documents to the clearing agent
The first process is to submit your clearance documents to the clearing agent who will be doing the clearing of the vehicle for you. These include a bill of lading, commercial invoice, packing and other shipment documents.
Clearing agent reviews documents
After you submit the documents to the clearing agent, he/she will read through the documents to check for errors or missing documents.
Clearing agent creates UCR for you
Once all the errors have been corrected or all missing documents have been submitted, the agent will use the shipment documents to create a Unique Consignment Reference (UCR) on the GCNet platform.
Clearing agent proceeds to the Pre-Clearance Assessment Report System (PARS)
The clearing agent will then proceed to the PARS to send a request to the Ministry of Trade and Industry for them to issue you an Import Declaration Form (IDF) using the UCR he created on the GCNet platform.
Clearing agent applies for Customs Classification and Valuation Report (CCVR)
When the IDF is received, the agent will apply for the Customs Classification and Valuation Report (CCVR), which will be issued on the WEST BLUE IT platform.
The CCVR will give an assessment of duties due and will also show the risk level assigned to the cargo containing the car. Green represents a low risk, Yellow represents medium risk and Red represents a high risk.
Post vessel arrival
The post vessel arrival stage is where the car arrives at the port and the last but one stage. This stage involves two main processes.
Submit Bill of Entry and make payments
Once the cargo containing the car arrives at the port, the agent will obtain rotation number, location of the container and all information related to the cargo from the shipping line.
The information together with the CCVR and IDF will be used to prepare a Bill of Entry (Customs Declaration which will be sent to the Customs Management System.
The declaration will be validated and a unique reference number will be assigned. After that, you will be required to pay the assessed duty and taxes on the declaration at the assigned Bank.
Review of all submitted documents
When the payment is confirmed, the Customs Compliance Officer assigned to the Declaration will start verification of the Declaration with the supporting documents.
Depending on the risk level of the container, additional tests will be done before a “Delivery Allowed Message” will be issued for the car to be released. You might also pay some terminal charges.
Final clearance and delivery
This is the final stage of the clearing process of your car. This stage involves one main process.
Exit verification
The driver of the vehicle conveying the car out of the port will report to the Customs Preventive Section for Exit Verification before the car will exit the port.
After the Customs Preventive Section performs their review, and it’s safe for the car to exit the port, the car will be approved for exit through the gate.
The Customs gate will also check whether the Customs Preventive Section has performed their review and then update the status of the container containing your car as “Exited Port”.
Finally, your car will be delivered to you.
Conclusion
In summary, the clearing of a car from the Tema port is a little bit complicated but this article has simplified the process for you to understand it clearly.
Due to the fact that most of the clearing process involves a clearing agent, make sure that the agent you select is trusted and genuine.
Have you ever cleared your car from the Tema port? Please share your experience with us in the comments section below.
