The Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS) has addressed concerns raised by importers over delays and confusion in the clearance of goods under the Pre-Export Verification of Conformity (PVoC) system and other import procedures.
Several importers claim that although their goods are cleared by both the Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) and UNBS, they are often unable to retrieve them from bonded warehouses due to what they describe as “unclear circumstances.”
A key concern highlighted is that, without a release order from UNBS, importers cannot claim Value Added Tax (VAT) refunds from URA, as the refund process requires proof that goods have been fully cleared—including compliance with standards.
Typically, importers rely on clearing and forwarding agents—who operate independently and under contract with the importers—to process goods through URA and UNBS.
According to existing regulations, URA issues a Certificate of Tax Clearance, a release order, and an exit order to signify that goods can enter the market, with UNBS subsequently notified.
However, it has emerged that many importers do not follow up to ensure their goods have also been cleared by UNBS for standards compliance.
This gap, according to UNBS officials, is the primary reason why some goods remain held in bonded warehouses.
The issue appears especially common among Authorized Economic Operators (AEOs)—importers granted streamlined clearance processes by URA due to their history of compliance. These importers may bypass certain tax clearance steps, but they are still required to obtain standards clearance from UNBS.
Ronald Ahimbisibwe, Acting Manager of Import Inspections at UNBS, explained that regardless of whether goods are inspected in the country of origin (under PVoC) or within Uganda, the importer must obtain an Import Clearance Certificate (ICC) from UNBS before releasing the goods into the market.
During a recent dialogue between UNBS and importers, it was revealed that many traders were unaware of the ICC requirement.
Some acknowledged they had received one before, but only through their clearing agents, not directly from UNBS.
UNBS has since pledged to increase public awareness and streamline the process to reduce confusion and delays in the clearance of imports.
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