Watch out! Kenya, Tanzania and other countries have introduced new rules on imported goods.

Published in:2018-10-08

Kenya

 1. Be sure to provide Kenya's consignee's address, city, country and telephone number and display them on the bill of lading.  If the bill of lading is in operation and the consignee is not in Kenya, the notifying party must be a local company in Kenya and show the address, city, country and telephone number on the bill of lading.

 2. For bills of lading transferred by customers to other East African countries via Kenya, the description of the bill of lading should show Cargo in - Transit to ( [ City Name ] in [ Country Name ] via Mombasa Port by Consensus' s Own Costs and Risks;

 3. All goods to and from Kenya must be provided with 8 - digit HS Code and displayed at the cargo drawing.  If multiple goods are mixed and different HS codes are involved, please send CARGO information separately according to HS codes.

 4. Be sure to provide net weight information and display it on the bill of lading.

 5. According to the notification from Kenya Port Authority, goods to Mombasa must be cleared at container freight station ( CFS ) designated by Kenya Port Authority.  Customers cannot choose container freight station ( CFS ) or inland container freight station ( ICD ) on their own.  Therefore, all bills of lading to Mombasa do not accept any terms indicating transshipment to container freight station ( CFS ) or inland container freight station ( ICD ) in Kenya.


 Tanzania

1. Be sure to provide the local consignee's address, city, country and telephone number in Tanzania and display them on the bill of lading.  If the bill of lading is transshipment and the consignee is not in Tanzania, the notifying party must be a local Tanzanian company and show its address, city, country and telephone number on the bill of lading;

 2. For bills of lading transferred by customers to other East African countries via Tanzania, the description of the bill of lading should show Cargo in Transit to ( [ City Name ] in [ Country Name ] ) via Dar es Salaam Port by Conspicuouss Own Costs and Risks;

 3. All goods arriving in Tanzania and transiting here must be provided with 8 - digit HS Code and displayed in the cargo drawing.  If multiple goods are mixed and different HS codes are involved, please send CARGO information separately according to HS codes.

 4. Be sure to provide the net weight of the goods and show it on the bill of lading.

 5. It is not acceptable to use the same box in two or more bills of lading.


MSK's Requirements on Bills of Lading for Goods Imported to Kenya

 It is also understood that the shipping company Maersk issued a notice stating that, according to the information required by Kenya, from September 24, 2018, the bill of lading ( SI ) information of all imported goods into Kenya must include the contact telephone number of the consignee.  If no phone number is submitted after September 24, 2018, Maersk will not handle international shipping through Mombasa Port ( Kenya's largest port ) or Mombasa Port.

 Maersk said that the phone number provided by SI during the submission phase ensures that the owner can be contacted at any time during the entire delivery cycle.  It will improve Maersk's ability to actively notify the relevant parties of the arrival of the goods and avoid the resulting delayed costs.