31/08/2023
PROCEDURE FOR ACQUIRING ECONOMIC PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENT (EPA) EXPORTER REGISTRATION NUMBER AND THE ORIGIN DECLARATION
The European Union (EU) has replaced the ‘EUR1 Certificate of Origin’ document that accompanied exports under the Ghana-European Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) with an ‘Origin Declaration’, a more simplified document.
The ‘Origin Declaration’ can be acquired through ICUMS. This is however after acquiring an Exporter Registration Number following GRA’s approval of an Exporter Registration application, subject to yearly renewal. Effective 20th August, 2023, exports to the EU under the EPA must be accompanied by the ‘Origin Declaration’.
The procedure for acquiring both Exporter Registration and Origin Declaration is as follows:
EXPORTER REGISTRATION PROCESS
1. Declarant logs on to the ICUMS via url: https://external.unipassghana.com/
2. Proceed to Single Window > Registration > Exporter Registration>Create Exporter Registration
3. Under the “Certificate” field, select GC02, EPA Exporter Registration. Fill out the form, including all mandatory fields and submit it for further processing by GRA. A submitted application has the status “SU,Submitted”
4. A submitted application will go through a first-level verification check by a GRA Checking Officer. The application status is updated to AC,Approved Checking Officer when approved at this stage
5. The process may include,where necessary, an inspection/examination of the applicant’s premises. This process updates the status of the application to “PR, Release for Premises Inspection”. The declarant must confirm the proposed date or provide an alternative date. Using the path: Single Window > Registration > Exporter Registration >Search Exporter Registration
The declarant can access the application and confirm from the Schedule History section of the application form. Declarant must provide a telephone number when confirming the schedule.
6. Where there is a premises inspection, the Inspector submits a report. This process updates the application status to 'AJ, Approval Inspection'
7. A GRA Verification/Approval Officer will review the application and inspection result for approval. Where the status is approved, the status is updated to ‘AP, Approved’. An ‘Exporter Registration Number’ is then generated and displayed to the declarant.
NB: The Exporter Registration Number becomes the primary document for applying for the ‘Origin Declaration’. Data elements like the Exporter TIN,items (Item HS Codes) and the ‘Origin Criterion’ must be the same on the‘Exporter Registration’ before the Origin Declaration can be successfully obtained
ORIGIN DECLARATION PROCEDURE
Origin Declaration can only be possible after acquiring an ‘Exporter Registration Number’ through ICUMS
1. Declarant logs on to the ICUMS via url: https://external.unipassghana.com/
2. If a bill of entry (BOE) has already been created, use the BOE UCR as a reference to create an ‘Origin Declaration’. Otherwise, the declarant must create a Unique Consignment Reference (UCR) using the path:
SingleWindow > Registration >Unique Consignment Reference > Create UCR
3. Create the Origin Declaration application using the path:
Single Window > Application > Consignment Application >Create Application
Declarant must select the UCR number, Consignment Type as ‘Single Consignment’,MDA as ‘GOrD, Origin Declaration’, Application as ‘GC02, Origin Declaration’,Process as ‘GC0101, Origin Declaration’ and Location as ‘CUHQ, GRA CUSTOMS HEADQUARTERS’
Click on Create Application Form to open the application form with Tabs.
- Fill in the details on the General tab and click on the Save button
- Fill in the details of the Transport tab and click on the Save button
- Fill in the details of the Invoice tab and click on the Save button
- Add the export items under the Item tab and click on the Save button
- Fill in the details of the Approval tab and click on the Save button
- On the Confirmation tab, preview the entire application and click on Submit button
4. After submission, the Payment Info tab is made available. This tab has the bill details for payment. The status of the application is also updated to ‘PP, Submit-Pending Fee’.
5. After payment, the status of the application will be updated to ‘AP, Approved’. The ‘Origin Declaration’ also becomes available as a PDF printout which is downloadable. Details on the Origin Declaration include the ‘Exporter Name’, ‘Exporter Registration Number’, and ‘Country of Origin’ as Ghana.
For further enquiries, contact GRA Customs Customer Unit on 0800900113, 0299311344, 0508658192
