The Challenges Faced by Importing and Exporting Companies with the Arrival of DUIMP

*Article written by Mauro Dias, President of Fiorde Group

The international trade (COMEX) market is awaiting the implementation of DUIMP with great anticipation.

DUIMP will significantly alter all processes for participants and service providers in the international supply chain. In this article, we will focus on the impact on importing and exporting companies, as well as service providers such as customs brokers and freight agents.

The DUIMP project refers to a package of new systems and procedures that will substantially modify product information databases, cargo handling and tracking processes, import and export licensing processes, and payment methods. Finally, it will change the way import and export information is recorded.

These changes aim to make the monitoring and control systems of intervening entities (such as the Federal Revenue Service, State Revenue Services), regulatory agencies (ANVISA, Mapa, Ibama, Army, INPE, IPEM, etc.) increasingly accurate and intelligent.

Therefore, it is important for companies to start thinking about how to migrate their current records to the new model (bearing in mind that there are already some conceptual changes in the way an item is described).

The most important modification is the introduction of the concept of ATTRIBUTES!

What are these attributes? They are additional pieces of information that allow for a better item description. In reality, this additional information is already required today (as advised by the Revenue Service), and during an inspection, it demands that products be described completely with all possible information in order to precisely identify that product. Therefore, many companies have already improved their records by adding a series of complementary information to the description.

However, we have two problems. At this point, not all attributes allocated to each NCM (Mercosur Common Nomenclature) have been finalized; there are still discrepancies. The second problem is that it will significantly impact all additional information for NCMs that were incorporated into the old record.

Products that are in text format in the item description fields and in the unique record must, for example, each be allocated to their exact attribute field. Otherwise, even if it is in the description field, that information will not be valid. In other words, the requirements are perfectly clear and structured, leaving no doubt as to what information is needed because each one will be allocated to a specific attribute, allowing for automatic data verification.

The second challenge will be the adaptation of processes and systems for LPCO. LPCO, which is already in operation, replaces Import Licenses.

However, with the introduction of DUIMP, there will be a significant change in the operation of LPCO.

Unlike an Import License (LI), LPCO will return to the concept of the old Import Guides, where the importer requested an Umbrella Authorization and used it partially until the balance was zeroed out. In other words, it is a batch licensing process.

This change indicates that all companies will have to adapt their COMEX systems to this new logic since today there is a single and specific LI for each shipment. Given the extent of this change, it is likely that all traditional COMEX systems will need to be replaced due to the size of the current change from the logic of a DI (Declaration of Import) and LI (Import License).

Other changes will occur with the introduction of DUIMP, such as payment control, berthing control, drawback management, etc., which will be discussed in future articles. However, due to the relevance of these two changes, I believe it is more convenient to focus on them, as companies will have to decide how to adapt their systems to these modifications.

SIRIUS Supply Chain Platform Concept

The SIRIUS platform from Fiorde Group comes with a revolutionary concept in supply chain management.

In addition to providing full visibility of the entire supply chain, both INBOUND and OUTBOUND, domestic and international, from order generation within the ERP to item stocking or delivery to the customer, it also handles all functionalities of the stakeholders in the logistics process, such as LI, DI, RE preparation, coordination and monitoring of air and sea shipments, yard management, deliveries, shipments, all collaboratively.

In other words, for companies operating in SIRIUS, all the changes that will come with the introduction of DUIMP will be completely transparent, without any need for changes or acquisition of any other system.

Today, for SIRIUS customers, information is already available for both LPCO and the unique record. As for DUIMP, it will be available for production as soon as it is released.

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