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Source: Antigua and Barbuda's Government

01.07.2020

Novel Coronavirus Information

Statutory Instruments

Need to know Information

Press Releases

Source: https://ab.gov.ag/detail_page.php?page=42

                                                                                                 

April 22, 2020: State of Emergency and Curfew continues from 12:01 a.m. April 23 to 12 Midnight May 14, 2020

April 7, 2020: No. 21 Public Health Act (Dangerous Infectious Disease) (Amendment) (No. 2)
Regulations, 2020. 1. These special measures shall take effect from 6:00a.m. on Thursday 9th April 2020 to 6:00a.m on Thursday 16th April, 2020. 2. Restriction on freedom of movement of every person in Antigua and Barbuda shall be exercised only in accordance with the  provisions of these Regulations. A mandatory 24-hour curfew shall be in effect from 6:00a.m. Thursday 9th April, 2020 to 6:00a.m. Thursday 16th April, 2020. Public transportation services are permitted to operate during the curfew period from 6:00a.m. to 7:00 p.m. provided the operator of the public transport and the passengers wear a face mask and the passengers are seated in a staggering formation with one person in every row that would normally accommodate 2 persons and no more than 2 persons in the back seat. The curfew period shall not apply to persons who are employees or officers of the following: (d) Customs and Excise Department; (j) Air Traffic Control Services; (m) Antigua and Barbuda Port Authority; (o) Antigua and Barbuda Airport Authority; among others. 

March 17, 2020: Suspension of cruise line services, the Cruise Lines International Association
(CLIA) announced that several major cruise lines, including Royal Caribbean, Carnival, Norwegian, and MSC, will voluntarily suspend sailing operations to and from U.S. ports for 30 days due to the novel coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic. Disney also suspended its sailings through to the end of March 2020. Most ships at sea will continue with their itineraries as planned as these cruise lines are prepared to temporarily suspend North American service. 


More information:

https://ab.gov.ag/detail_page.php?page=42


Source: WCO/Antigua and Barbuda Customs and excise Division

23 April 2020

COVID-19 MEASURES

1. Measures aiming to Facilitate the Cross-border Movement of Relief and Essential Supplies

1.1. Implemented new office hours, new shift system, reduced working schedules and on call exigencies to facilitate arriving cargo vessels and aircrafts;

1.2. Afforded the pre-arrival processing of the Goods declaration and release of the goods upon arrival;

1.3. Prioritize the clearance of relief consignments including donations of medical supplies and equipment, cleaning supplies and other COVID relief essential items;

1.4. Coordinate and cooperate with other government agencies with the objective of speeding up the clearance of relief goods;
1.5. Supported the proposal to suspend duties and taxes on the pandemic relief items.


2. Measures aiming at Supporting the Economy and Sustaining Supply Chain Continuity


2.1. Customs and Excise Division has been listed at an essential service in this difficult time, hence we will continue to provide services to the public and other key stakeholders while protecting the interest of the nation;

2.2. Facilitated the use of e-commerce due to the increase demand for online services by providing additional bandwidth and the scheduling of more IT staff to handle problems more efficiently and timely;

2.3. The introduction of duty and tax relief measures on essential relief items and key food items to continue trade in goods and to sustain supply chain linkages and management;

2.4. Continue to operate key customs sections to facilitate the import and export of goods and the movement and clearance of goods at all the ports;

2.5. Designated priority lanes for brokers and the trading public to facilitate the speedy movement of goods;

2.6. Created an ASYCUDA Helpdesk online or by phone that can serve as a single window for the trade to reach out to the administration.


3. Measures aiming at Protecting Customs Administrations’ Staff


3.1. Ensured sufficient inventory of protective gear (gloves, masks and sanitizers) and commence distribution to all staff;

3.2. Instituted routine, dedicated cleaning of counters, door handles and rails throughout the day;
3.3. Decommission water coolers;
3.4. For vulnerable front-line staff, we have selective quarantine of staff who have health conditions, pregnant and those who work in areas of high international traffic such as airport and seaports and offices in Jolly Harbour and English Harbour who are at higher risk of exposure (consult Ministry of Health)

3.5. Identified core operations for situations of partially or fully closed buildings and confirm skeleton staff schedule;

3.6. Accommodated staff with young children who are presently home from school due to the COVID-19 Virus, where parental guidance is needed and have also established a roster for the new shift and the working hours;

3.7. Took precautionary measures to quarantine an entire Airport Baggage Shift Staff Members who might have been in contact with an infected passenger;

3.8. Prominently display signage at particularly Office entrances advising the public to not enter the building if they are experiencing possible symptoms such as sneezing, coughing, have a sore throat or difficulty breathing, etc.;

3.9. Construct a protective barrier between front-line staff and customers, where necessary;

3.10. Encourage the use of electronic service in conducting business with Customs and Excise.


4. Measures aiming at Protecting Society


4.1. Requested and coordinated information sessions with Ministry of Health, Wellness and the Environment - Chief Health Inspector and Chief Medical Officer, etc.; 4.2. Limit the number of persons entering the public areas to no more than three persons per cashier to allow for social distancing;

4.3. Communicated information to all Stakeholders via Public Service Announcement;

4.4. Participated in Public Information Programs on State Media;

4.5. Apply social distancing measures.


5. Other measures.


5.1. The introduction of a Pandemic Relief Barrel Initiative for each household from 1st April to 30th June 2020;

5.2. Increase surveillance to prevent smuggling or importation of illegal or counterfeit goods and pharmaceuticals.

Antigua and Barbuda Customs and Excise Division received the request from the Government on 17 March 2020 to assist with creating a list of items with HS codes and current rates of duty to seek duty exemption for these items. Based on the request from the Government of Antigua and Barbuda, a draft list of Goods with tariff codes was compiled to seek duty exemption to assist with COVID-19 pandemic, which were in line with the WCO HS Classification Reference for COVID-19 Medical Supplies and which also reflected the guidelines provided by the WCO (See the list in the Annex). The majority of the remaining items listed in the WCO list are already free of Duties and Taxes in Antigua and Barbuda by other established procedure and statutory instruments that exempt these health related items for Government/Hospital use.


Further information : http://www.wcoomd.org/-/media/.........





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