‘Dry runs’ will run from mid-September to mid-October ‘to assess the level of readiness of all actors’, French Customs and CLECAT say.
Amid the continuing confused messages on when the UK will leave the European Union (EU), France’s Customs authority will test its preparedness for a no-deal Brexit and a smart border with its neighbour across the Channel.
A series of “dry runs” organised by the French ministry will run from mid-September to mid-October, as the current Brexit deadline of midnight on October 31 looms into view.
French freight forwarding and logistics organisation Transport et Logistique de France (TLF Overseas) will take part in the dry runs through the cargo corridors of Dunkerque, Calais port, Calais tunnel, Dieppe, Le Havre, Caen-Ouistreham, Cherbourg, Saint-Malo, and Roscoff.
European freight forwarding association CLECAT said that the test process “aims to establish a more exhaustive scope of testing, as close as possible to the real situation following a no-deal Brexit”, adding: “The main objective of the dry runs is to assess the level of readiness of all smart border actors and allow each of them to take on their own role as of the Brexit date.”
The tests will be undertaken by shippers, freight forwarders and customs representatives, and carriers. Software providers are also included in the process.
During the dry runs, CLECAT said that five major steps will be tested on import flows – import pairing, crossing, disembarking, SPS flow management and Customs flow management. Three major steps will be tested on export flows – export pairing, visas TIR/ATA and boarding notification.
Operational tests involving customs, veterinary services, infrastructure managers and shipping and rail companies have already taken place in March 2019
According to its website, the French Customs authority is getting prepared “for all scenarios, including the no deal [Brexit] option”.
It said that the objective in this new phase of tests is to establish “a more exhaustive scope of testing, as close as possible to the real situation following the implementation of Brexit”.
If the UK leaves the EU without any agreement, it will result in the reinstatement of customs formalities under the Ministry of Agriculture – including health controls and inspection certificates.
The main objective of the dry runs, said French Customs, is to assess the level of readiness of all smart border actors and allow each of them to take on their own role from the implementation of Brexit.
French Customs has recruited 700 additional officers between 2018 and 2020 and in 2017, a special advisory committee was appointed to the Director General to study the Brexit impacts and raise awareness among the stakeholders.
Source: Lloyd’s
