REGIONAL TIR SEMINAR
Amman _ Jordan
31 October - 1 November 2000 |
The
TIR Convention and its Customs Transit Regime
The TIR Convention of 1975, a treaty administered
by the United Nations and open for accession by all of its member States,
allows the international transport of goods in Customs sealed road vehicles
from Customs offices in a country of departure to Customs offices in a
country of destination, transiting through as many countries as necessary,
without physical frontier control of the goods in transit and without
deposit of Customs security.
These facilities to international transport and trade do not jeopardize
national Customs control over import, export and transit procedures. Customs
duties and taxes at risk in TIR transit are always guaranteed by an international
TIR insurance system supervised by an inter-governmental organ, the TIR
Executive Board, representing the States which are Contracting Parties to
the TIR Convention.
Today 63 States are Parties to the TIR
Convention and in more than 40 of these States the TIR Customs transit
procedure is regularly used. Around 2.5 Million TIR Customs transit operations
are carried out every year.
In the ESCWA region Jordan, Lebanon, Syrian
Arab Republic and Kuwait have already ratified the TIR Convention and
other countries are considering their accession.
Objectives
of the Seminar
The Seminar will provide detailed information
on the functioning of the TIR Customs transit regime, its advantages for
Customs authorities and international transport and trade in the region.
The Seminar will particularly focus on the roles and responsibilities
of the various actors involved in TIR Customs transit operations (Governments,
transport operators, national associations, insurance companies, the International
Road Transport Union (IRU), the TIR Administrative Committee and the TIR
Executive Board (TIRExB)). The Seminar will also allow for an open discussion
and exchange of views on the present situation with regard to Customs
transit in the region and on the possible application of the TIR regime.
Organization
The Seminar is organized by the TIR Executive
Board (TIRExB) and its TIR secretariat, in close co-operation with the
United Nations Economic Commissions for Europe (UN/ECE) and Western Asia
(UN/ESCWA) and the Customs Department of the Ministry of Finance of Jordan.
- Participation
Participation at the Seminar is free
of charge for registered participants (please use attached
registration form). Participants however are expected to cover their
own travel costs, accommodation and other personal expenses. The Seminar
is intended for senior Government officials responsible for Customs
and trade policies as well as Customs transit procedures. It is also
open to representatives of the private sector involved in international
road transport, freight forwarding and Customs procedures. Governments
and non-governmental organizations of the following countries have
been invited to attend: Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon,
Oman, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syrian Arab Republic, Turkey,
United Arab Emirates and Yemen.
-
-
Participating TIR Experts
The Seminar will be addressed by high-level
officials and experts from the Ministries of Finance (Customs authorities)
of France, Germany and Italy, the TIR secretariat, the UN/ECE and UN/ESCWA
as well as by representatives of the International Road Transport Union
(IRU).
- Programme
Summary
31 October 2000
- Customs transit procedures: Experiences made in the region and in Europe
- The legal framework of the universal TIR Convention
- Introduction to the TIR Customs transit procedure
- Legal, administrative and technical requirements at the national level:
TIR Carnet; International guarantee system; Customs secure vehicles; Mutual
recognition of Customs controls; Controlled access
- The role and responsibilities of national Customs authorities in the
TIR procedure
- - The role and responsibilities of
the private sector in the TIR procedure
- The roles and responsibilities of international organs: TIR Administrative
Committee, TIR Executive Board (TIRExB); TIR secretariat, International
Road Transport Union (IRU)
- Advantages of the TIR procedure for Customs authorities and the transport
sector
1 November 2000
-
- Procedures for accession to and implementation
of the TIR Convention - Role of the TIR procedure for the evelopment of
international transport and trade - Application of the TIR procedure in
the region and introduction of the necessary legal, administrative and
technical procedures: Discussion among participants from Customs authorities
and the private sector with international Customs and transport industry
experts - Recommendations of the Seminar and possible follow-up activities
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Date
and Venue
The Seminar will be held on 31 October
and 1 November 2000 at the Hotel Inter-Continental in Amman (Jordan).
Hotel reservations should be made using the attached
Hotel reservation form in order to profit from special rates (US$ 96 single
room, US$105 double room, inclusive of buffet breakfast, 10% service charge
and 13% sales tax).
- Information
The detailed programme of the Seminar
as well as further information on the TIR Convention and the TIR Customs
transit procedure are available on the Internet (http://www.unece.org/trans/bcf/tir/welcome.html)
or can be obtained contacting the TIR secretariat which can also provide,
upon request, a limited number of hard copies of the TIR Handbook (English;
Arabic (under preparation)
- Contacts
-
Should you need any further information
on the TIR Seminar in Riga, please contact the TIR secretariat:
Tel: +41-22-917-2433 or +41-22-917-1531
Fax: +41-22-9170039 or +41-22-9170614;
E-mail: tirexb@unece.org
Postal address: UNECE TIR secretariat, Office 410, Palais des Nations,
CH-1211 Geneva 10.
Relevant information is also available on the TIR web site (http://www.unece.org/trans/bcf/tir/welcome.html).