107 - 08/99 - Customs Fines - Alleged Misdeclaration of Ships' Stores - Cote D'Ivoire/ Ivory Coast

We have recently been advised of an incident which occurred at the port of Abidjan on Cote D' Ivoire involving large fines levied by customs for errors and/or omissions in declarations made by the master.

The case in question involved alleged discrepancies in the declaration of ship's stores in respect of paint, thinner and grease. It was claimed that the master underdeclared the amounts of these stores. As a consequence customs levied a large fine on the ship which after negotiation was reduced to CFA Fr.2m (c.US$3000).

The Club's correspondents advise that customs scrutinise all

'store list'

declarations. Local regulations require accurate declarations and minor misdemeanours are punished with relatively large fines.

We recommend that masters calling at the ports of Abidjan or San Pedro on the Coast D'Ivoire are reminded to be extremely diligent when completing customs declarations.

Source of Information

Richard Case - L4

Sobia Akram - L4

Peter Jackson - L3