INTRODUCTION OF SADC E-CERTIFICATE OF ORIGIN

The Malawi Revenue Authority (MRA) is informing importers, the business community and the public that the Southern African Development Community (SADC) has introduced a SADC electronic Certificate of Origin or SADC e-Certificate of Origin. The introduction of the SADC e-Certificate of Origin is aimed at simplifying Customs procedures to facilitate trade.

The SADC e-Certificate of Origin is an electronically processed and issued Certificate of Origin by an issuing authority attesting that goods declared by an exporter conform to specific Rules of Origin.

SADC Rules of Origin are a set of criteria used to determine whether or not goods that are traded between SADC Member States qualify as originating goods for the purpose of being accorded preferential treatment under the SADC Free Trade Area.

The SADC Certificate of Origin has over the years been processed manually by the issuing authority in the country of origin of the goods. However, the manual processing of the certificate has been posing challenges to both importers and Customs officials, negatively affecting trade due to delays and overhead costs.

SADC is therefore introducing the SADC e-Certificate of Origin to increase the seamless flow of intra-trade across the SADC region by eliminating impediments caused by the manual process. With the SADC e-Certificate of Origin, issuance of certificates is done through a system, and the authorization process, which includes registration of exporters, stamps and signatures, is done in electronic format.

The electronic system will allow manufacturers, producers and exporters to electronically register their products for preferential treatment and apply for certificates of origin whenever there is an export shipment. Furthermore, the system allows Customs officers to approve the system electronically. 

The following are some of the benefits of the system:

·      Elimination of Certificates of Origin related fraud since there is an immediate transmission of certified certificate of origin to designated third party recipients in a secure electronic environment

·      Saves times as there is no need to visit Customs offices for application and registration. These are done online

·      Reduced transaction cost

·      Reduced errors and duplicate entries

·      Direct accessibility of Customs Administration in importing country to the Certificate of Origin issued by the exporting authority

·      Properly documented production and process that will enable Customs to ascertain origin of goods easily

·      Improved record management

·      Reduced Cross-border certificate verification time

·      Improved available accurate statistical data

SADC is implementing the SADC e-Certificate of Origin on a pilot phase in Eswatini, Zambia and Malawi and it will roll out the implementation of the initiative in the other Member States by 2024. The implementation of the SADC e-Certificate of Origin on a pilot phase in Malawi will be launched in Blantyre, on 6th and 7thSeptember 2022.

The Authority would therefore like to advise importers, the business community and the public to take note of the implementation of the SADC e-Certificate of Origin on a pilot phase in Malawi.

For more information, please contact Head of Corporate Affairs Steven Kapoloma on 0888 986 200 or email skapoloma@mra.mw.     

John S. Biziwick
COMMISSIONER GENERAL