Shenzhen and Dapeng Customs have achieved further progress on Customs reform at Yantian Port. New initiatives, such as the pre-declaration for import cargoes and streamlined international trans-shipment procedures, have been established to facilitate the business development of shipping lines and shippers. This has helped to reduce the cost of imports and exports, and strengthened Yantian Port's competitive edge.

With an ever-increasing demand for imports in the China market, the Pearl River Delta importers are demanding a more efficient import declaration procedure. In March 2005, Shenzhen Customs, with the support of other port administrators, initiated a pre-declaration procedure for import-laden containers.

The new procedures allow shipping agents and customs brokers to make import declarations before the cargo arrives.  Once the container arrives at Yantian, YICT will discharge it and send it directly to the inspection area. This saves one day in the terminal and reduces the logistics costs for the cargo owner. All importers using Yantian welcome this initiative.

At the request of international shipping lines such as Maersk and "K"Line, Dapeng Customs has upgraded its computer system and simplified the documentation procedure for international trans-shipments. It has also cancelled the original regulation whereby trans-shipment cargoes had to be discharged and remain at the terminal before being released. Now, international trans-shipment cargoes can be loaded onto another vessel immediately after arrival, provided the shipping lines make a pre-declaration in advance.

Mr. Stephen Wu, the General Manager of South China Operations of Maersk Sealand commented: "This has helped to simplify the procedure and facilitated international trans-shipment operations, meeting the ever-increasing demand for modern logistics development."

At the same time, Customs is actively supporting the development of the port's feeder network. In March 2005, the feeder service between Shantou and Yantian was launched. Through this feeder service, export cargoes from Shantou can use the international shipping services at Yantian, making operations more timely and economical compared to land transportation.

In addition, Customs has also extended its office hours and continues to work on ways to constantly improve Customs procedures at Yantian. Later this year, Customs will launch a series of new measures, such as centralised inspection, improved gatehouse sealing, etc.