The year 2018 promises to be a year of major changes in the customs service. The National Revenue Administration (KAS) has expanded the operations of the Official Customs Clearance Center (CUDO) institution. The main goal of the introduced changes was to streamline the work of customs branches and increase their effectiveness, but what is the reality?
Grzegorz Banyś, regional director at the customs agency Rusak Business Services: The CUDO tool consists of separating the actual place where goods are presented for clearance from the place where the customs declaration is processed electronically. This system was introduced in some customs branches as early as 2014. Since January 2, 2018, the CUDO program has covered all internal customs branches – excluding border and postal branches – within a given customs and tax office.
The implementation of CUDO requires appropriate changes in authorizations for the use of simplifications, such as: entry in the declarant’s records, simplified declaration, centralized clearance, and transit simplifications regarding the designation of the branch responsible for handling electronic messages. The changes also cover authorizations for special procedures. They concern the numbers of customs branches to which electronic messages are sent, rather than changes in the implementation of the authorization itself.
CUDO and satellite branches do not always operate during the same hours and days (usually satellites work shorter hours and are closed on Saturdays), which necessitates the use of the main CUDO – for presenting goods, legalizing certificates, and handling TIR. Some activities are excluded from the scope of duties of the service branches, so they must still be carried out directly at CUDO, e.g., applications, export confirmations, contingency procedures, etc. Taking over cases from several satellites by a single CUDO unit causes communication problems, e.g., it is difficult to reach a dispatcher or manager by phone. Some actions of the service branches are dependent on CUDO or require cooperation with CUDO, and this cooperation has not been going very well so far. Another disadvantage is the way inspections are conducted, which are carried out by both CUDO and satellite branches – in the event of a decision to inspect, the clearance process is significantly delayed.