Source: WCO/ Directorate General of Customs – Argentina
16 April 2020
1. Measures aiming to Facilitate the Cross-border Movement of Relief and
Essential Supplies
- Advocate for or support the waiving or suspension of import duties and taxes for relief items.
- Prioritize the clearance of relief consignments on the basis of a list of essential items.
2. Measures aiming at Supporting the Economy and Sustaining Supply Chain Continuity
- Set up of crisis teams to ensure the overall performance of customs tasks.
- Take measures to guarantee personnel availability in the long term. Operate a 24/7 Customs clearance system.
- Introduce facilitation measures with regard to the requirements to submit original documents or to stamp certain documents.
- Persons affected by the activities and services declared essential in the emergency, such as foreign trade activities, are exempted from complying with the"social, preventive and compulsory isolation" and the prohibition to move.- Extension of computation of Customs terms/due dates until 26 April 2020.
3. Measures aiming at Protecting Customs administrations’ Staff
- Provides Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to staff, such as masks, gloves, sanitizers, etc.
- Apply social distancing measures.
- Minimum necessary personnel is used to process essential operations.
- Ensure strict compliance with sanitary regulations in places/offices designated as primary Customs zones and preserve the health of Customs personnel, trade assistants and the Customs Service, their representatives and dependents, importers, exporters and other persons who interact with the Customs Service.
- Daily control of the body temperature of the people who enter the facilities of the places/offices designated as the primary customs zones as well as the Customs personnel at the beginning and end of their workday in order to ensure extreme measures of prevention. In the presence of fever (38C ° or more) with or without other symptoms (respiratory distress, cough, headache, decreased smell), no service should be taken and Health personnel should be notified.
- Remote work/Home office must be assigned for all those tasks and functions that allow it.
- At each port, airport, border crossing office and other operational points in the country, the Customs service staff must have a COVID‐19 contingency plan publicly known.
- Customs official who are included in the "Risk Groups" (pregnant women, people over 60 years old, people with diseases - heart, respiratory, immunosuppressed, diabetes) should not provide face-to-face services.
4. Measures aiming at Protecting Society
- Ensure appropriate integration for preparedness and response.
- Availability of all COVID-19 related information on official website and social media accounts.
- Prohibition of entry into the country, for a period of up to 26 April 2020 inclusive, of non-resident foreign persons who have transited through "affected areas" within the fourteen (14) days prior to their arrival.
- A network of Customs reference points has been created to provide answers to different types of queries: airway, ex ante control, land, control, rules and procedures, processes, MERCOSUR and international and AFIP institutional matters.
- Intercept the trafficking of counterfeited medical supplies.
Further information: http://www.wcoomd.org/-/media/wco/public/global/pdf/topics/facilitation/activities-and-programm.......
Source: Presidency
Decree 333/2020, April 1, 2020, EXTRAZONE IMPORT RIGHTS. ARTICLE 1 .- Set an Extrazonal Import Right (DIE) of ZERO PERCENT (0%) for the goods included in the tariff positions consigned in the Annex (IF-2020-18851604-APN-SSPYGC # MDP) that is part member of this decree. ARTICLE 2 .- Exempt from the payment of the statistical fee to the import operations of the goods reached by this decree.
Decree 331/2020, April 1, 2020, PROHIBITION OF ENTRY INTO THE NATIONAL TERRITORY of foreign persons not resident in the country, through PORTS, AIRPORTS, INTERNATIONAL STEPS, BORDER CENTERS and any other access point, in order to reduce the chances of contagion.
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Decreto 333/2020, 1 de abril del 2020, DERECHOS DE IMPORTACIÓN EXTRAZONA. ARTÍCULO 1°.- Fíjase un Derecho de Importación Extrazona (D.I.E.) del CERO POR CIENTO (0 %) para las mercaderías comprendidas en las posiciones arancelarias consignadas en el Anexo (IF-2020-18851604-APN-SSPYGC#MDP) que forma parte integrante del presente decreto. ARTÍCULO 2°.- Exímese del pago de la tasa de estadística a las operaciones de importación de los bienes alcanzados por el presente decreto.
Decreto 331/2020, 1 de abril del 2020, PROHIBICIÓN DE INGRESO AL TERRITORIO NACIONAL de personas extranjeras no residentes en el país, a través de PUERTOS, AEROPUERTOS, PASOS INTERNACIONALES, CENTROS DE FRONTERA y cualquier otro punto de acceso, con el objeto de reducir las posibilidades de contagio.
More information:
Source: Transport Ministry - National Port Authority
DI-2020-36-APN-GG, 2 April 2020: Approves the "APPLICATION PROTOCOL IN THE FIELD OF THE BUENOS AIRES PORT AGAINST THE PROPAGATION OF THE CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19)", without prejudice to the application of measures that establish temporary restrictions or obligations different, approved by the Health Authority.
IF-2020-19061813-APN-MTR, March 26, 2020, Instructs international transport port terminals to arrange, in the next 72 hours, the operation of Health Posts at their expense located in a place to be determined in consultation with the health authorities of the jurisdiction.
National Prevention Protocol COVID-19 in Maritime and inland waterways, includes current regulations related to COVID-19 and the protocols adopted by the different ports.
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DI-2020-36-APN-GG, 2 Abril del 2020, AGP Aprueba el “PROTOCOLO DE APLICACIÓN EN EL AMBITO DEL PUERTO BUENOS AIRES FRENTE A LA PROPAGACION DEL CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19)”, sin perjuicio de la aplicación de medidas que establezcan restricciones u obligaciones temporales diferentes, aprobadas por la Autoridad Sanitaria.
IF-2020-19061813-APN-MTR, 26 de marzo 2020, Instruye a las terminales portuarias de transporte internacional para que dispongan, en las próximas 72 horas, el funcionamiento de Postas Sanitarias a su costa ubicadas en un lugar a determinar en consulta con las autoridades sanitarias de la jurisdicción.
Protocolo Nacional Prevención COVID-19 en el Transporte Fluvial, Marítimo y Lacustre, incluye normativa vigente relacionada con el COVID-19 y los protocolos adoptados por los distintos puertos.
Contact information:
Source: Transport Ministry
Decree 274/2020 Art. 2 ° .- Except for the prohibition to enter the national territory provided for in the preceding article, and to comply with the obligatory isolation that corresponds pursuant to the provisions of Article 7 of Decree No. 260 /20 to:
a. persons who are affected by the transfer of merchandise by international trade operations for the transport of cargo of merchandise, by air, land, sea, river and lake means;
b. carriers and crew of ships and aircraft;
c. people affected by the operation of flights and medical transfers.
The provisions of this article shall apply whenever the excepted persons are asymptomatic, and comply, both within and outside the country, with the recommendations and instructions provided by the national health authority.
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Decreto 274/2020 Art. 2°.- Exceptúase de la prohibición de ingreso al territorio nacional prevista en el artículo precedente, y de cumplir con el aislamiento obligatorio que correspondiere en virtud de lo dispuesto en el Art. 7° del Decreto N° 260/20 a:
a. las personas que estén afectadas al traslado de mercaderías por operaciones de comercio internacional de transporte de cargas de mercaderías, por medios aéreos, terrestres, marítimos, fluviales y lacustres;
b. los transportistas y tripulantes de buques y aeronaves;
c. las personas afectadas a la operación de vuelos y traslados sanitarios.
Lo dispuesto en el presente artículo se aplicará siempre que las personas exceptuadas estuvieren asintomáticas, y den cumplimiento, tanto dentro como fuera del país, a las recomendaciones e instrucciones que disponga la autoridad sanitaria nacional.
Contact information:
https://www.boletinoficial.gob.ar/suplementos/2020031601NS.pdf
Source: Transport Ministry - National Administration of Civil Aviation
Multiple resolutions related to civil aviation, including measures and instructions for airlines related to COVID19.
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Múltiples resoluciones relativas a la aviacion civil, incluyendo medidas e instrucciones para líneas aéreas relativas al COVID19.
Contact information:
HOTLINE: National Borders Health Directorate
Dirección Nacional de Sanidad de Fronteras,
Telefono 0800 222 1002 opción 1
Contact information: