Dubai Customs supports the International Road Transport (TIR Carnet) system. This global customs transit procedure enables goods to move under customs control from a country of origin, through transit countries, to a land of destination in securely sealed load compartments via a multilateral, mutually recognised system backed by a UN convention.
Goods shipped under cover of an internationally accepted customs transit document, the TIR carnet, do not require inspection at border crossings while in transit. The TIR carnet provides a financial guarantee to pay the suspended duties and taxes. The International Road Transport Union (IRU) manages the guarantee system.
In 2014, Dubai Customs signed a guarantee agreement for the implementation of the TIR system with the Automobile and Touring Club of the United Arab Emirates (ATCUAE), the official authorised representative of the IRU as a TIR issuing and guaranteeing association for the UAE. The system was activated in the UAE in 2017 when the Federal Customs Authority was nominated as the competent authority to approve certificates of vehicles and containers for transporting goods under the TIR procedure.
Dubai Customs cleared the first transit consignment under the cover of the TIR carnet in 2020. As many as 214 customs transactions have been processed under the TIR system, involving goods worth AED 142.2 million.
Dubai Customs issued Customs Policy No. 52/2021 on implementing the TIR carnet system. This policy defines the customs centres that apply the design, including all centres affiliated with the Air Cargo Centers Department and the Land and Sea Customs Centers departments. The policy also laid down the TIR carnet terms and conditions and procedures regulating the movement of goods under the carnet.
The usage of TIR is steadily growing across the UAE, the GCC and the wider Middle East region, as transport operators are increasingly seeing the benefits of the reduced transport times and lower costs brought by the system.
Activating the TIR system promotes Dubai’s sustainable foreign trade growth, enabling significant reductions in time and cost for trade operations carried out through this system. This, coupled with the integrated customs services and facilities Dubai Customs provides to all Dubai-based trade operators, supports the realisation of the Dubai Economic Agenda (D33) ‘s ambitious goals towards boosting Dubai’s trade in goods and services to AED25.6 trillion within the next decade.